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EXPERIMENTAL  STUDIES  OF  MENTAL 
DEFECTIVES 


tdttfatUittal  ^Bgrlyotog^  jjottograplyg 

tJtlttii  bit  ^"9  IRontroBr  Wlnifflt 
No.  7 

Experimental  Studies  of  Mental 
Defectives 

A  Critique  of  the  Binet-Simon  Tests  and  a  Contribution 
to  the  Psychology  of  Epilepsy 

By 

J.  E.  WALLACE  WALLIN,  Ph.D. 

Director  of  Psychological  Clinic,  School  of  Education, 
University  of  Pittsburgh 

Author  of  optical  Illusions  of  Reversible  Perspective, 
Spelling  Efficiency,  Etc. 


lalttmnrr.  ILf^.lk, 

WARWICK  &  YORK,  Inc. 

1912 


Copyright,  1912 
By  WARWICK  AND  YORK,  INC. 


Educatioo 
Library 

Ho  I 


EDITOR'S  PREFACE. 

In  this,  the  seventh  of  the  series  of  Educational  Psy- 
chology Monographs,  Dr.  Wallin  has  presented  the 
results  of  a  systematic  critical  study  of  the  Binet- 
Simon  scale  when  applied  to  a  colony  of  over  three 
hundred  epileptics. 

These  results  will  appeal  to  schoolmen  and  to 
physicians  and  alienists  for  two  reasons.  In  the  first 
place,  they  have  added  to  our  knowledge  of  the  men- 
tal status  of  the  epileptic.  Epilepsy  has  long  re- 
mained a  little-understood  disease.  We  are  told  that 
some  men  who  have  attained  eminence  have  been 
epileptic,  e.  g.,  Julius  Caesar,  Mohammed,  and  prob- 
ably St.  Paul,  to  cite  conspicuous  instances ;  yet  the 
great  majority  of  those  afflicted  with  the  malady  fail 
to  reach  normal  mental  maturity,  and  fall,  as  Dr. 
Wallin  shows,  into  the  upper  group  of  the  feeble- 
minded, now  known  as  morons.  These  children  re- 
semble more  the  typical  laggard  of  the  public  schools 
than  the  typical  feeble-minded  child,  and  they  re- 
quire special  educational  treatment.  For  this  reason 
the  more  we  can  discover  as  to  the  psychology  of  the 
epileptic,  the  more  successful  will  be  our  educational 
measures. 

In  the  second  place,  these  results  have  added  to 
our  knowledge  of  the  Binet-Simon  tests.  The  fact 
that  these  tests  are  being  widely  adopted  by  school 
authorities  as  a  convenient  and  assumedly  scientific 


970098 


Vi  EDITOR^S     PREFACE 

method  of  measuring  retardation  or  acceleration  of 
mental  development  makes  any  careful  study  of  their 
reliability  of  direct  practical  importance.  And  the 
more  so,  because,  as  Dr.  Wallin's  investigation 
shows,  the  tests  in  question  are  far  from  being  so 
simple  and  so  universally  applicable  a  tool  as  many 
laymen  have  supposed.  On  the  contrary,  despite 
their  undeniably  great  practical  value,  they  suffer 
from  numerous  imperfections  and  limitations.  These 
defects  can  be  made  known  only  by  thoroughgoing 
trial  on  large  groups  of  individuals  by  expert  inves- 
tigators. This  monograph  makes  a  valuable  contri- 
bution to  this  critique  of  the  tests.  Dr.  Wallin  be- 
lieves that  the  reconstruction  and  perfection  of  the 
tests  by  competent  research  should  not  be  allowed 
to  conflict  with  the  continued  use  of  the  1908  scale 
according  to  prescribed  standard  conditions.  For 
this  reason  a  guide  to  the  conduct  of  the  1908  series 
(reprinted,  with  the  permission  of  its  editor,  from 
The  Psychological  Clinic,  December  15,  1911)  is  in- 
corporated herewith  as  the  final  chapter  of  the 
monograph. 

Guy  Monteose  Whipple. 


TO  MY  FIEST  PBECEPTOR 

IN  PSYCHOLOGY  AND  PHILOSOPHY, 

EDWABD  FRY  BARTHOLOMEW. 


FOEEWORD. 

The  following  experimental  studies  represent 
some  of  the  fruits  of  my  psychological  and  anthro- 
pometric investigations  of  epileptics  in  The  New 
Jersey  State  Village  for  Epileptics  at  Skillman  from 
October,  1910,  to  and  including  May,  1911.  A  second 
comparative  psychological  research  of  public  school 
children  and  epileptic  school  children,  by  a  set  of 
serial  rate  tests  of  development,  will  appear  in  a 
separate  volume  at  some  later  date. 

I  feel  that  no  apology  is  needed  for  the  time  and 
pains  devoted  to  the  critical  examination  of  the 
Binet-Simon  scale  of  intellectual  development.  This 
scale  has  recently  been  victimized  by  the  indiscrimi- 
nate exploiter.  It  has  been  hailed  by  popular  writers 
in  the  daily  and  periodical  press,  and  even  by  scien- 
tific workers,  as  a  wonderful  mental  X-ray  machine, 
which  will  enable  us  to  dissect  the  mental  and  moral 
mechanisms  of  any  normal  or  abnormal  individual. 

But  these  tests  are  no  **open  sesame"  to  the  hu- 
man mind,  no  talisman  that  will  transform  an  ordi- 
nary observer  into  a  psychic  wizard.  Because  the 
scale  is  coming  into  wide  use  in  the  public  schools, 
the  psychopathic  and  criminological  institutes,  and 
institutions  for  mental  and  moral  defectives,  and 
because  it  is  being  appropriated  by  ordinary  class- 
room teachers  and  persons  having  no  technical  train- 
ing in  clinical  psychology  or  knowing  little  about 
scientific  method  in  general,  it  is  worth  while  to  point 


2  EXPERIMENTAL  STUDIES   OP  MENTAL  DEFECTIVES 

out  its  legitimate  uses  as  well  as  its  limitations  and 
present  imperfections.  These  tests  need  to  be  safe- 
guarded from  uncritical  exploitation  and  mystifica- 
tion, and  rescued  from  the  educational  fakers  and 
medical  quacks.  I  shall  feel  well  repaid  for  my 
labors  if  this  contribution  arouses  students  to  a  full 
realization  of  the  necessity  of  a  further  prolonged 
and  systematic  critical  study  of  the  scale. 

These  studies — as  well  as  those  which  will  fol- 
low— should  appeal  to  the  students  of  defectives  and 
the  problems  of  human  variation.  The  serviceability 
of  the  Binet-Simon  scale,  despite  its  imperfections, 
in  determining  the  mental  status  of  defectives,  will 
be  seen.  Moreover,  the  study  of  epileptics  should 
interest  particularly  the  alienist  and  physician,  and 
the  schoolman:  the  alienist  and  physician,  because 
epilepsy  is  a  pathological  condition  as  yet  little  un- 
derstood, characterized  by  marked  mental  disturb- 
ances ;  the  schoolman,  because  the  epileptic  children 
constitute  a  numerous  class  which  grades  nearer  the 
public  school  laggard  than  do  the  feeble-minded  chil- 
dren, and  which  cannot  be  reached  by  the  cut-and- 
dried  methods  of  the  schools,  but  which  requires  a 
special  educational  regime. 

I  have  designedly  contented  myself  with  a  purely 
empirical  and  experimental  exposition,  leaving  the 
reader  to  work  out  the  implications  and  draw  his 
own  conclusions  from  the  facts  supplied.  The  facts 
tell  their  own  story.  To  have  pointed  out  the  vari- 
ous practical  and  theoretical  implications  affecting 
the  education,  care  and  training  of  epileptics  would 
have  imduly  extended  the  size  of  the  monograph. 

J.  E.  W.  W. 

February,  1912. 


CONTENTS. 

Editor's  Preface v 

Foreword 1 

CHAPTER  I. 

Introduction.  The  Binet-Simon  Scale  as  an  In- 
strument for  Classifying  Defectives  ....      5 

CHAPTER  II. 

Testing  the  Binet-Simon  Tests:  An  Exemplifi- 
cation of  an  Adequate  Method  of  Analysis    .    20 

CHAPTER  III. 

The  Variation  of  Mental  and  Physical  Traits  in 
Relation  to  the  Age  Classification  of  the  Binet- 
Simon  Scale 59 

CHAPTER  IV. 

A  Practical  Guide  for  the  Administration  of 
the  Binet-Simon  Scale  for  Measuring  Intel- 
ligence      116 


CHAPTEE  I. 

INTRODUCTION.     THE  BINET-SIMON  SCALE  AS  AN  INSTRU- 
MENT  FOR    CLASSIFYING    MENTAL   DEFECTIVES/ 

The  functions  of  a  clinical  psychologist  in  an  insti- 
tution for  defectives,  in  a  public  school  system,  in  a 
university,  in  a  psychiatric  institute,  or  in  a  juvenile 
court,  are  twofold:  first,  that  of  theoretical  inves- 
tigation, or  the  increase  of  knowledge  under  con- 
trolled and  verifiable  conditions.  This  is  essentially 
the  work  of  the  research  psychologist  or  of  pure 
science,  so-called;  second,  that  of  practical  applica- 
tion, or  the  utilization  of  the  truths  discovered  in  the 
educational,  vocational,  recreational,  hygienic,  med- 
ical and  custodial  treatment  of  the  sufferers.  This 
is  the  work  of  the  consulting  psychologist  as  distin- 
guished from  the  pure  researcher,  and  constitutes 
the  sphere  of  orthogenesis,^  mental  hygiene,  or  ap- 
plied clinical  psychology.  While  the  line  of  demarca- 
tion between  these  two  aims  should  not  be  made  too 
fast  and  hard,  logically  the  work  of  investigation  in 
an  infant  science  should  take  chronological  prece- 
dence to  the  work  of  consultation,  as,  indeed,  science 
logically  must  precede  true  art.  The  art  of  righting 
defectives  cannot  rise  above  the  empirical  until  it  is 

'This  chapter  has  been  adapted,  by  permission,  from  a  paper  read 
before  the  St.  Louis  meeting  of  the  National  Association  for  the 
Study  of  Epilepsy,  and  printed  in  the  Transactions  of  the  Association 
for  1911,  Vol.  VIII,  pp.  29f. 

•In  its  twofold  aspect  of  orthophrenics  and  orthosomatics,  as  ex- 
plained elsewhere:  J.  E.  Wallace  Wallin,  Individual  and  Group  Effi- 
ciency, Ptycholoffioal  Bulletin,  9 :  1912,  October. 

6 


6  EXPERIMENTAL  STUDIES   OF  MENTAL  DEFECTIVES 

based  upon  a  foundation  of  assured  facts.  Until  we 
thoroughly  understand  the  different  types  of  ner- 
vous and  mental  defectives  our  treatment  cannot  be 
made  maximally  effective.  For  these  reasons  I  pur- 
posely aimed  to  confine  my  work  in  the  psycho-clin- 
ical laboratory  at  Skillman  entirely  to  research,  and 
for  these  reasons  I  shall  limit  the  discission  in  the 
following  pages  almost  entirely  to  a  consideration 
and  interpretation  of  the  facts  brought  out  in  the 
investigations. 

During  my  eight  months'  stay  at  the  institution 
the  following  surveys^  of  the  Village  were  completed 
(completed  as  far  as  measuring  or  testing  each  pa- 
tient once  is  concerned) :  measurements  of  standing 
and  sitting  heights,  of  weight,  of  lung  capacity,  of 
the  strength  of  right  and  left  hand  grip,  of  station 
or  body  sway,  of  the  speed  of  performing  the  form- 
board  test  (replacing  ten  blocks  of  various  forms 
in  corresponding  holes  in  a  board),  and  of  intel- 
lectual capacity,  or  the  extent  of  intellectual  retarda- 
tion, as  evidenced  by  the  Binet-Simon  serial  diag- 
nostic scale. 

In  addition  to  the  above,  a  special  set  of  tests  was 
carried  out,  designed  to  show  the  character  and  ex- 
tent of  the  deviation  or  disorganization  found  in  epi- 
leptics in  respect  to  a  number  of  particular  mental 
traits  and  capacities  which  play  a  basic  role  in  men- 

*The  other  lines  of  investigation  started  during  this  period  comprise 
a  series  of  measurements  of  the  effects  of  convulsions  upon  various 
mental  traits  and  capacities,  and  an  investigation  into  the  personal, 
social,  motor,  industrial  and  school  efficiencies  of  epileptics.  The  lat- 
ter was  carried  out  by  means  of  the  printed  questionnaire  or  syllabus 
method.  See  Wallin,  Human  Efficiency :  A  Plan  for  the  Observa- 
tional, Clinical  and  Experimental  Study  of  the  Personal,  Social,  In- 
dustrial, School  and  Intellectual  Efficiencies  of  Normal  and  Abnormal 
Individuals,  Pedagogical  Seminary,  18 :   1911,  74ff. 


BINET-SIMON   SCALE  FOE  CLASSIFYING   DEFECTIVES  7 

tal  development.  These  tests  include  an  extended 
series  of  controlled  group  measurements  of  the 
speed  and  accuracy  of  perception,  perceptual  dis- 
crimination, observation  and  reaction;  the  capacity 
to  memorize,  and  the  power  of  immediate  and  pro- 
longed retention;  the  capacity  and  rate  of  forming 
spontaneous  associations  with  determinate  ante- 
cedents ;  the  ability  to  form  such  controlled  associa- 
tions as  are  involved  in  adding  colunms  of  ten  one- 
place  digits  and  of  supplying  antonyms  to  a  set  of 
simple  words;  the  ability  to  retain  a  list  of  logical 
and  illogical  sequents,  with  determinate  antecedents, 
from  one  reading  by  the  experimenter  both  during  a 
period  of  two  minutes  and  during  a  period  of  four 
weeks ;  the  capacity  for  visual  imagination,  and  the 
capacity  for  linguistic  construction  as  evidenced  by 
the  ability  to  construct  a  maximal  number  of  words 
from  six  supplied  letters,  and  by  the  ability  to  form 
a  maximal  number  of  sentences  each  of  which  had  to 
contain  three  supplied  nouns  or  verbs.  This  set  of 
differential  tests  was  elaborated  into  six  consecutive 
series  and  was  given  every  twenty-eighth  day  to 
groups  of  the  brightest  epileptic  school  children  at 
the  Village  and  to  somewhat  less  than  100  bright, 
average  and  backward  pupils  in  the  public  schools 
of  a  nearby  town.  The  results  of  the  testing  in  the 
public  schools  will  enable  us  to  plot  a  series  of  nor- 
mal age  norms  of  the  functional  capacity  of  the  vari- 
ous traits  tested.  By  means  of  such  comparative 
scales  or  indices  it  will  not  only  be  possible  to  bring 
epileptics,  or  other  types  of  defective  individuals, 
into  perspective  with  normal  children,  but  to  plot 
individual  curves  of  developmental  defects  or  accel- 
erations in  the  case  of  any  abnormal  or  svpemormal 


8  EXPERIMENTAL  STUDIES   OF  MENTAL  DEFECTIVES 

child.  Moreover,  since  all  of  the  successive  tests, 
while  different,  are  practically  of  the  same  difficulty, 
it  is  possible,  by  giving  them  at  stated  intervals 
(monthly,  semi-annually,  annually,  etc.),  to  plot  rate 
curves  of  development ;  that  is,  it  is  possible  to  meas- 
ure experimentally  the  rate  of  improvement  or  de- 
velopment which  various  mental  traits  undergo  from 
time  to  time  as  a  result  of  normal  maturation,  or  of 
education,  training,  practice,  or  familiarity/ 

The  desirability,  or  even  the  feasibility,  of  estab- 
lishing psychological  rate-norms  of  development  has, 
strangely,  scarcely  dawned  upon  us  until  recently, 
although  the  practical  value  of  such  norms  is  pos- 
sibly greater  than  the  value  of  the  corresponding 
anthropometric  standards  of  yearly  development 
during  the  growth  period  of  height,  weight,  physical 
energy  and  vital  capacity.  The  importance  of  a  set 
of  anthropometric  norms,  arranged  on  the  grade  or 
percentile  basis,  has  been  eloquently  set  forth  by  the 
lamented  Sir  Francis  Galton,  to  whose  comprehen- 
sive intellect  many  sciences  have  become  indebted. 
Thanks  to  the  labors  of  a  few  of  Galton 's  followers, 
notably  Bowditch,  Porter  and  Smedley,  we  now  pos- 
sess a  set  of  fairly  reliable  norms  of  physical  devel- 
opment for  certain  ages,  by  means  of  which  we  are 
able  to  determine  the  physical  station  of  a  given 
child  of  a  given  age,  and  by  means  of  which  we  can 
say  whether  his  physical  progress  is  normal  or  sat- 

'One  of  my  aims  in  devising  these  tests  was  to  secure  experimental 
means  for  measuring  results  in  education,  such  as  the  effects  of  dental 
and  medical  hygiene,  schoolroom  moisture  and  temperature,  diurnal 
and  seasonal  changes,  fatigue,  the  use  of  tobacco,  upon  the  working 
efficiency  of  the  pupil,  and  upon  the  growth  and  development  of  various 
mental  functions.  A  description  of  five  of  these  tests  will  be  found  in 
Wallin,  Experimental  Oral  Euthenics,  Dental  Coanufi,  54:  1912,  404- 
418;  545-566.    (See  also  references.) 


BINET-SIMON  SCALE  FOB  CLASSIFYING  DEFECTIVES  9 

isfactoiy  as  measured  by  the  percentile  grade  to 
which  he  belongs  (using  height  as  the  basis  of  com- 
parison). But  we  are  now  beginning  to  realize  that 
we  cannot  properly  diagnose  developmental  defects 
of  the  mind  until  we  have  constructed  a  similar  set 
of  psychic  norms  of  development  of  various  traits 
and  capacities.  When  we  have  psychic  norms  for 
specialized  capacities,  we  shall  be  able  to  locate  the 
mental  station  of  a  given  child  at  a  given  time,  and 
determine  whether  his  rate  of  mental  development 
is  normal  for  the  grade  in  which  he  classifies.  These 
norms  will  possess  fundamental  value  for  purposes 
of  developmental  diagnosis  in  the  study  of  not 
merely  the  lesser  deviations,  but  also  the  more  pro- 
found mental  abnormalities.  To  supply  these  men- 
tal developmental  scales  is  chiefly  a  matter  of  time, 
labor  and  ingenuity :  the  instrumental  and  technical 
difficulties  are  secondary.  Such  scales  will  not,  of 
course,  attain  the  accuracy  of  refined  physical  meas- 
ures, but  they  will  be  far  superior  to  our  present 
*  common  sense'  judgments.  The  fair  degree  of  suc- 
cess attained  by  the  simple  Binet-Simon  tests  of  in- 
telligence justifies  the  belief  that  this  problem,  baf- 
fling as  it  seems,  is  not  insoluble.  By  means  of  the 
above  serial  group  tests  I  am  hoping  at  some  later 
date  to  make  some  little  addition  to  our  knowledge 
in  this  largely  unexplored,  but  inviting  and  impor- 
tant, field  of  inquiry.  Aside  from  the  value  which 
the  data  from  these  tests  will  have  for  developmental 
diagnosis,  the  results  may  also  be  used  as  a  means 
by  which  to  check  up  the  accuracy  of  the  Binet-Simon 
tests,  with  the  consideration  of  which  I  shall  be 
chiefly  concerned  in  the  present  volume.  The  latter 
tests  are  such  a  striking  contribution  to  our  methods 


10  EXPERIMENTAL  STUDIES   OF  MENTAL  DEFECTIVES 

of  studying  defectives  that  too  much  time  cannot  be 
spent  in  the  effort  to  give  them  their  proper  eval- 
uation. 

Those  who  may  be  unfamiliar  with  the  B.-S. 
(Binet-Simon)  tests  should  consult  Chapter  IV.  It 
may  be  explained  here  that  they  constitute  an  ex- 
tremely simple  and  yet  fairly  serviceable  measuring 
rod  of  intellectual  capacity.  The  scale  consists  of  a 
graded  series  of  62  individual  tests  (including  the 
one-  and  two-year-old  tests),  varying  in  number  from 
three  to  eight  for  each  of  the  first  thirteen  years  of 
life.  To  illustrate :  (  a  child  who  follows  visually  a 
lighted  match  moved  in  front  of  his  face,  who  grasps 
and  handles  a  block  placed  in  his  hand,  and  who 
grasps  a  suspended  cylinder,  is  credited  with  a  men- 
tality of  one  year.  A  one-year-old  child  normally 
does  these  things.  A  child  who  can  state  his  sex, 
who  recognizes  common  objects,  such  as  a  knife, 
penny  and  key,  who  can  repeat  three  numerals  when 
heard  once,  and  who  can  designate  the  longer  or 
shorter  of  two  lines  differing  by  one  centimeter,  is 
rated  as  four  years  old  mentally.  By  means  of  a 
scale  of  this  sort  it  is  possible,  therefore,  to  classify 
individuals  approximately  according  to  their  degree 
of  intelligence,  and  to  measure  the  extent  of  intel- 
lectual arrest,  retardation  or  degeneration  shown  by 
subnormal  individuals,  or  the  extent  of  precocity  or 
acceleration  shown  by  supernormal  individuals. 
This  scale  is  the  product  of  laborious  and  ingenious 
research  by  the  noted  French  psychologist,  Binet, 
and  his  co-worker,  Simon.  The  standards  fixed  for 
each  age  are  supposed  to  represent  the  normal  per- 
formances of  French  children  of  the  working  classes. 

In  the  present  chapter  I  shall  limit  myself  to'show- 


BINET-SIMON   SCALE  FOB  CLASSIFYING  DEFECTIVES        11 

ing  how  a  colony  of  epileptics  classify  by  the  B.-S. 
scale,  and  to  pointing  out  certain  striking  peculiari- 
ties or  anomalies  in  the  curve  of  distribution,  which, 
while  they  may  be  caused  by  various  factors,  either 
implicate  fundamental  abnormalities  in  the  mental 
make-up  of  the  epileptic  or  fundamental  defects  in 
the  B.-S.  tests. 


GRAPH  I. 


Classification  of  333  Epileptics    ( 

( )  by  the  Binet-Simon  Method 


)    and  378  Feeble-Minded 


B.-S.  Ages 


n   12  13 


BINET-SIMON   SCALE  FOR  CLASSIFYING  DEFECTIVES        13 


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14  EXPERIMENTAL  STUDIES    OF  MENTAL  DEFECTIVES 

Confining  our  attention  to  the  gross  or  the  group 
classification,  it  is  seen  that  the  333^  epileptics  in- 
cluded in  Table  I  classify  as  follows :  5.7%  are  idiots 
(mentality  of  I  and  11  years),  27.3%  are  imbeciles 
(mentality  of  III  to  VII),  61.5%  are  morons  (men- 
tality of  VIII  to  XII),  and  5.4%  have  a  mentality  of 
Xin  years  or  over.^  In  all,  82.8  %  have  a  mentality 
of  less  than  eleven  years.  The  idiot  and  the  XIII- 
year-olds  are  about  equally  infrequent,  while  the 
morons  are  decidedly  preponderant. 

These  results  will  attain  added  significance  if  we 
compare  them  with  the  B.-S.  distribution  for  the  378 
feeble-minded  inmates  tested  at  the  Training  School 
in  Vineland,  New  Jersey.^  Nineteen  and  two-tenths 
per  cent,  of  the  feeble-minded  are  idiots,  54%  are 
imbeciles,  26%  are  morons,  not  a  single  one  grades 
as  thirteen,  and  96.4%  grade  less  than  eleven  years 
of  age  mentally.*  The  feeble-minded  idiots  are  about 
three  and  one-half  times  as  numerous  as  the  epilep- 
tic idiots,  and  the  feeble-minded  imbeciles  about  two 
times  as  numerous  as  the  epileptic  imbeciles.  On  the 
other  hand,  the  epileptic  morons  are  more  than  two 

*Those  epileptics  were  excluded  from  the  tabulation  who  had  not  had 
a  convulsion  within  a  period  of  two  years,  and  a  few  others  who  were 
not  thoroughly  tested  because  of  certain  sensory  defects.  The  number 
of  patients  of  each  mental  age  is  shown  in  Table  I.  The  patients  were 
in  their  normal  condition  during  the  testing.  Patients  who  passed  in 
two  of  the  13-year  tests  were  credited  with  this  age,  provided  they  also 
passed  at  least  five  tests  in  Ages  XI  and  XII.  Drawing  one  triangle 
was  accepted  for  the  first  of  the  13-year-old  tests. 

-Ages  printed  in  Roman  numerals  throughout  this  monograph  refer 
to  mental  as  distinguished  from  chronological  age,  and  refer  to  the 
mental  ages  indicated  in  the  Binet-Simon  scale. 

'Henry  Herbert  Goddard,  Journal  of  Psycho-Asihenics,  15  (Nos.  1 
and  2),  1910. 

*The  per  cents,  for  each  age  are  as  follows :  Age  I,  9.5%  ;  II,  9.7%  ; 
III,  10.5%;  IV,  9.8%;  V,  11.1%;  VI,  10.2%;  VII,  12.4%;  VIII, 
11.6% ;  IX,  7.9% ;  X,  3.7% ;  XI,  1.3%,  and  XII,  1.8%. 


BINET-SIMON   SCALE   FOR  CLASSIFYING   DEFECTIVES         15 

and  one-half  times  as  numerous  as  the  feeble-minded 
morons.  While  the  great  mass  of  people  in  both  of 
these  classes  of  defectives  have  a  mentality  of  less 
than  XI  years,  the  proportion  is  13.6%  greater 
among  the  feeble-minded  than  among  the  epileptics. 
As  found  in  institutions  at  least,  the  typical  epileptic 
condition  is  moronity  (five-eighths  of  the  entire  num- 
ber), while  the  typical  feeble-minded  condition  is 
imbecility  (more  than  one-half  of  the  entire  number). 

These  figures  indicate  that  there  is  a  marked  dif- 
ference between  the  grade  of  intelligence  of  epileptic 
dements  and  that  of  feeble-minded  retardates.^ 

One  reason  for  the  superiority  of  the  epileptics  may 
be  the  fact  that,  relatively,  a  larger  number  of  the 
feeble-minded  than  of  the  epileptics  were  youths. 
Fifty  per  cent,  of  the  feeble-minded  were  under  21, 
while  only  30%  of  the  epileptics  were  under  21.  As 
the  B.-S.  scale  is  now  constituted,  it  may  be  assumed 
that  defective  adults  will  grade  somewhat  higher 
than  defective  children,  as  is  indeed  indicated  in 
Table  I.  Sixty-five  and  four-tenths  per  cent,  of  the 
adults  are  morons  (mentality  of  from  Age  VIII  to 
Age  XII,  inclusive),  while  only  53.6%  of  the  children 
are  morons,  and  7.1%  of  the  adults  grade  XIII  years 
as  contrasted  with  1.8%  of  the  children.  The  adults 
among  defectives  possess  a  larger  storehouse  of  ex- 
perience and  acquired  knowledge.  At  the  same  time, 
the  epileptic  superiority  will  attain  added  prominence 


'Space  does  not  avail  to  point  out  the  practical  implications  of  this 
fact,  but  we  may  emphasize  a  growing  conviction  that  epileptic  and 
feeble-minded  persons  should  not  be  huddled  together  in  the  same 
institution.  The  diflferences  in  the  mental  station — not  to  mention 
other  significant  differences — between  these  two  classes  are  such  that 
they  can  be  most  humanely  cared  for  in  separate  institutions,  or  at 
least  in  separate  divisions  in  the  same  institution. 


16  EXPERIMENTAL  STUDIES   OP  MENTAL  DEFECTIVES 

if  we  constitute  the  Xlll-year-olds  a  separate  class 
above  the  feeble-minded  line,  which  we  may  regard 
as  normal,  or  as  retarded  or  deviating,  though  not  to 
such  an  extent  as  to  render  the  individuals  feeble- 
minded. "We  should  then  have  to  add  to  this  class  all 
the  epileptic  children  who  are  retarded  less  than 
three  years  (children  retarded  less  than  three  years 
should  probably  not  be  rated  as  feeble-minded). 
There  are  nine  of  these — five  boys  and  four  girls. 
Adding  these  to  the  Xlll-year-olds,  we  get  a  total  of 
2T  normals,  or  deviates,  which  is  8.1%  of  the  entire 
group. 

This  figure  (8.1%)  we  are  justified,  I  believe,  in 
regarding  as  a  lower  limiting  value  for  two  reasons. 
First,  the  tests  in  the  higher  ages  are,  as  will  be  seen 
in  later  pages,  too  difficult  for  the  typical  American 
child  for  the  ages  to  which  they  are  assigned.  To  get 
a  check  on  these  higher  tests,  I  made  use  of  the  fol- 
lowing means:  A  few  of  the  supervisors  and  offi- 
cers at  Skillman  who  had  known  the  patients  inti- 
mately for  a  considerable  length  of  time  were  asked 
to  prepare  estimates  of  the  number  of  patients  whom 
they  regarded  as  ranking  above  the  feeble-minded 
station.  Three  of  these  officers,  quite  independently, 
made  for  the  total  population  the  same  estimate, 
namely,  10%.  Five  men  made  separate  and  inde- 
pendent estimates  of  the  total  male  population  as 
follows :  11, 11,  13, 14  and  20%.  With  one  exception, 
these  estimates  agree  fairly  well.  With  the  tests  as 
at  present  constituted,  it  is  a  question  whether  the 
line  of  feeble-mindedness  should  not  be  drawn  he- 

*It  is  interesting  to  note  that  among  these  27  there  is  only  one  who 
can  be  regarded  as  above  normal,  a  boy  somewhat  less  than  twelve 
years  who  grades  as  thirteen. 


BINET-SIMON  SCALE  FOB  CLASSIFYING  DEFECTIVES        17 

tween  eleven  and  twelve  instead  of  between  twelve 
and  thirteen,  as  has  been  done  tentatively  by  the 
American  Association  for  the  Study  of  Feeble-Mind- 
edness.  A  number  of  our  Xll-year-olds  certainly 
are  very  slightly,  if  at  all,  feeble-minded. 

A  second  reason  why  the  percentage  of  normals 
may  be  too  low  is  the  fact  that  the  institutional  cases 
at  Skillman  may  not  be  representative.  Our  curve 
in  general  is  valid  on  the  assumption  that  the  epi- 
leptics tested  are  typical.  According  to  the  theory 
of  the  probability  surface,  we  are  justified  in  regard- 
ing them  as  typical,  provided  the  selection  repre- 
sents a  chance  distribution.  But  it  is  possible  that 
two  selective  processes  have  operated  in  a  way  to 
distort  both  extremes  of  the  curve.  The  reason  that 
the  idiots  are  so  few  may  be  due  to  the  fact  that  the 
higher  grade  epileptics  have  received  preference  in 
admission  to  the  institution.  The  introduction  of  a 
constant  factor  of  this  sort  would  skew  the  fre- 
quency curve  in  the  direction  of  the  upper  limit. 
This  tendency  would  probably  stop  short,  however, 
before  it  reached  the  extreme  end  of  the  curve,  be- 
cause it  is  also  probable  that  the  highest  grade  of 
epileptics  from  the  better  social  classes  are  very 
rarely  found  in  State  institutions.  We  shall  not  be 
able  to  settle  this  point  definitely  until  other  institu- 
tions have  prosecuted  similar  studies  on  a  larger 
scale. 

In  spite  of  these  elements  of  uncertainty,  the  above 
facts  seem  to  warrant  three  general  conclusions: 
First,  that  the  great  mass  of  epileptics  (possibly 
from  85  to  90%)  fall  below  the  feeble-minded  line- 
just  how  much  inferior  the  higher  grade  epileptics 
are  to  those  persons  taken  at  random  in  the  general 


18  EXPERIMENTAL  STUDIES    OF  MENTAL  DEFECTIVES 

population  whose  schooling  and  training  are  about 
of  the  same  character  we  shall  be  in  no  position  to 
say  until  comparative  studies  by  identical  methods 
have  been  made ;  second,  that  they  do  not  fall  below 
this  line  to  such  an  extent  as  the  amented  feeble- 
minded class ;  and  third,  that  the  curves  of  distribu- 
tion differ  markedly  for  the  two  classes,  a  fact  to 
which  we  shall  now  direct  attention. 

One  of  the  significant  traits  of  the  epileptic  curve 
is  its  decidedly  skewed  or  anomalous  character, 
noticeable  particularly  between  Ages  VIII  and  XI. 
The  curve  presents  a  marked  contrast  to  the  curve 
of  feeble-mindedness  in  respect  to  its  frequency  sur- 
face. The  latter  curve  is  characterized  by  a  fairly 
uniform  rise  up  to  and  including  Age  VII,  and  by  a 
rapid  and  uniform  fall  after  Age  VIII.  It  has  more 
or  less  of  the  normal  bell-shaped  appearance.  But 
in  the  epileptic  curve  there  are  two  irregular  drops 
in  the  ascending  portion,  a  minor  at  V  and  a  major  at 
IX.  The  former  does  not  possess  much  significance 
because  of  the  small  number  of  subjects  tested  in  the 
lower  ages.  It  may  be  regarded  merely  as  a  fortui- 
tous phenomenon.  But  in  a  typical  curve  of  fre- 
quency the  rise  from  Age  VI  would  have  continued 
without  any  marked  break  at  IX  to  the  apex  at  X.  It 
is  apparent,  therefore,  that  those  accidental  factors 
which  normally  operate  to  produce  an  unskewed  or 
bell-shaped  curve  of  frequency  were  rendered  more 
or  less  inoperative  in  our  testing  by  some  constant 
factor  or  factors.  These  factors  may  reside  in  the 
method  of  giving  the  tests,  in  the  method  of  scoring, 
in  the  defective  nature  or  arrangement  of  the  tests 
themselves,  in  the  peculiar  mental  organization  of 
the  epileptic  (either  as  a  result  of  inborn  constitu- 


BINBT-SIMON   SCALE   FOR   CLASSIFYING   DEFECTIVES        19 

tion  or  as  a  result  of  the  disorganizing  processes  of 
the  disease),  or  in  the  averaging  of  the  results  for 
both  defective  children  and  defective  adults.  For 
example:  We  find  24.9%  of  the  epileptics  grading  X 
years  old,  as  against  8.4%  grading  IX  years  old; 
hence,  either  there  must  be  certain  defects  in  the 
mentality  of  epileptics  at  the  IX-year  level,  or  we 
must  consider  the  X-year-old  tests  as  normally  too 
easy,  or  the  IX-year  tests  as  too  difficult,  or  other- 
wise some  factor  extraneous  to  the  tests  themselves 
has  been  operative. 

In  order  to  arrive  at  a  correct  explanation  of  the 
skews  in  our  epileptic  curve  we  shall,  in  Chapter  II, 
undertake  a  minute  analysis  of  the  data. 


CHAPTER  II. 

TESTING  THE  BINET-SIMON  TESTS  :    AN  EXEMPLIFICATION 
OP  AN  ADEQUATE  METHOD  OF  ANALYSIS. 

In  the  preceding  chapter  we  noted  the  approxi- 
mate conformity  of  the  feeble-minded  curve  to  the 
normal  probabiKty  surface,  and  the  skewed  charac- 
ter, or  the  distinct  divergence  of  the  epileptic  curve 
from  the  bell-shaped  distribution  which  would,  on 
the  theory  of  probability,  be  expected  from  the  test- 
ing of  a  homogeneous  group  of  individuals.  If  the 
skews  cannot  be  shown  to  be  due  to  the  method  of 
scoring,  or  the  method  of  testing,  or  the  combining 
of  the  records  of  juvenile  and  adult  epileptics,  they 
must  be  ascribed  to  fundamental  peculiarities  or 
anomalies  in  the  mental  make-up  of  the  epileptic. 
The  epileptic  is  not  only  retarded,  and  thus  some- 
what like  other  amented  or  demented  individuals, 
but  his  mental  mechanisms  are  so  irregular,  atypical 
or  deviating  ( shown  particularly  by  the  ability  which 
he  frequently  manifests  to  pass  tests  in  many  higher 
age-levels)  that  he  is  apparently  qualitatively  differ- 
ent from  his  first  cousin,  the  feeble-minded  person. 
But  the  law  of  parsimony  requires  one  to  make  every 
legitimate  effort  to  explain  the  peculiarities  in  the 
epileptic  curve  by  the  lesser  causes  before  ascribing 
them  to  inherent  abnormalities  in  the  epileptic  mind, 
so  that  I  shall  begin  my  analysis  by  an  examination 
of  the  method  of  testing  and  the  method  of  scoring. 

20 


TESTING  THE  BINET-SIMON  TESTS  21 

I  tried,  of  course,  in  testing,  to  conform  as  closely 
as  possible  to  the  instructions  laid  down  by  the  au- 
thors (Binet-Simon),  and  particularly  to  the  syl- 
labus prepared  by  Goddard.  Having  worked  in 
Goddard's  laboratory,  I  was  in  a  position  to  follow 
the  methods  in  use  in  Vineland.  In  one  rather  im- 
portant detail,  however,  my  testing  differed  from 
the  Vineland  procedure:  I  employed  a  wide-range 
method  of  testing;  that  is,  instead  of  confining  the 
testing  of  the  patients  to  the  ages  immediately  be- 
neath or  above  the  ages  in  which  they  graded,  I 
tested  the  majority  throughout  the  greater  part  of 
the  scale.  This  was  done,  not  merely  to  arrive  at  a 
more  complete  clinical  picture — to  reveal  the  pecu- 
liar mental  lapses,  gaps  and  remnants,  the  presence 
of  which  may  be  assumed  to  characterize  degenera- 
tive or  involution  changes — but  in  order  to  test  the 
reliability  of  the  scale  itself.  For  the  latter  purpose 
nothing  but  a  wide-range  survey  will  suffice/ 

This  method  of  testing  gave  rise  to  a  rather  serious 
complication  in  the  matter  of  scoring,  for  it  some- 
times happened  that  a  subject  might,  say,  pass  all 
the  ages  up  to  and  including  Age  V,  fail  on  Ages  VI, 
VII,  VIII  and  IX,  but  pass  Age  X  and  also  a  few 
individual  tests  in  the  ages  beyond  X.  It  is  evident 
that  a  record  of  this  kind  would  admit  of  a  two-  or 
three-fold  basis  of  scoring :  we  might  use  as  the  basis 
of  scoring  either  Age  V,  plus  advance  credits  from 
Ages  VI  to  XII  or  XIII,  or  Age  X,  plus  advance 
credits,  or  we  might  use  the  average  of  the  ratings 
from  these  two  methods.  Age  V  would  be  regarded 
as  the  first  or  lowest  age,  beginning  below,  which  was 

'Such  a  survey  mast  be  made,  of  course,  primarily  on  large  masses 
of  normal  children. 


22  EXPERIMENTAL  STUDIES   OF  MENTAL  DEFECTIVES 

successfully  passed,  and  Age  X  as  the  last  or  highest 
age  successfully  passed/ 

In  case  the  basis  of  grading  were  the  first  or  lowest 
age  successfully  passed,  this  process  of  wide-range 
testing  would  create  marked  discrepancies  between 
the  results  of  different  investigators,  because 
through  the  process  of  wide-range  testing  many  pa- 
tients would  be  able  to  win  advance  credits  from 
higher  ages,  and  this  would  enable  them  to  reach  a 
higher  classification.  At  the  same  time  it  would 
make  it  possible  for  abnormalities  to  appear  in  the 
curve  which  would  be  concealed  by  a  narrow-range 
system  of  testing.  As  a  matter  of  fact,  scores  of  our 
low  or  medium  grade  epileptics  passed  one  or  more 
tests  in  five,  six,  or  even  seven  higher  age-levels,  and 
scores  won  from  ten  to  twenty  (or  even  more)  points 
in  advance  of  the  first  or  lowest  age  in  the  scale  which 
they  were  able  to  pass  completely.  It  follows,  there- 
fore, that  many  who  passed  higher-age  tests  failed 
on  lower-age  tests.  To  show  how  extensively  pa- 
tients who  passed  some  of  the  higher-age  standards 
failed  on  the  collective  standard  fixed  for  some  lower 
level,  the  subjects  have  been  classified  in  Table  II 
according  to  two  bases  of  rating :  A,  the  highest  or 
last  age  passed  completely,  plus  advance  credits; 
and  B,  the  average  of  the  first  or  lowest  and  the 
highest  or  last  ages  passed,  plus  advance  credits  in 
each  case.  To  illustrate  what  is  meant  by  these  two 
methods  of  grading,  we  will  suppose  that  a  given 
patient  passes  Age  X,  fails  on  Age  VI,  but  passes 
Age  V,  and  that  he  passes  5  tests  in  VI,  5  in  VII,  4 
in  VIII,  3  in  IX,  3  in  X,  2  in  XI  and  1  in  XII.    Ac- 

^An  age  is  "successfully  passed"  when  all  it8  test8  or  all  hut  one  are 
correctly  performed. 


TESTING  THB  BINET-SIMON  TESTS  23 

cording  to  Method  A,  the  subject  would  be  rated  as 
having  a  mentality  of  10.6  years  (Age  X  plus  3  ad- 
vance points) ;  and,  according  to  Method  B,  as  of 
10.1  years  (10.6  +  9.6^-^2). 

TABLE  II. 
Differences  arising  from  Grading  Patients  by  tu>o  Methods:  A,  basing 
the  Grading  on  the  Last  (or  Highest)  Age  in  the  Scale  success- 
fully passed,  plus  Advance  Credits;  and,  B,  on  the  Averages  of 
both  the  First  (or  Lowest)  and  the  Last  (or  Highest)  Ages  suc- 
cessfully passed,  plus  Advance  Credits  in  each  case. 

Entire 
Method.   Age.  Boys.  Girls.  Children.  Men.  Women.  Adults,  population. 
%         %  %  %  %  %  % 

A  IX      8.9      7.0  8.1  8.7         8.3         8.5  8.4 

B  IX    12.0     11.6         11.8        19.0       16.6        17.8         14.8 

D 

A 
B 

D 

A 
B 

D 

A 
B 

D 

A 
B 

D  0.0  4.4         4.7         4.5  2.7 

A  and  B  as  above.  D=difference  between  A  and  B.  Minus  nign 
indicates  a  smaller  per  cent,  in  a  given  age  in  the  A  method.  It  indi- 
cates a  loss  instead  of  a  gain. 

It  is  noteworthy  that  there  are  only  7  general 
averages  which  are  identical,  as  against  21  which  are 
different.    Considering,  first,  the  results  for  the  en- 

*Age  V-l-23  advance  point8=9.6. 


-3.1 

—4.6 

—3.7 

—10.3 

—8.3 

—9.3 

—6.4 

X 
X 

23.8 
22.4 

18.6 
16.3 

21.8 
19.3 

23.4 
16.5 

29.6 
23.1 

26.5 
19.8 

24.9 
19.5 

1.4 

2.3 

1.5 

6.9 

6.5 

6.7 

5.4 

XI 
XI 

8.9 
7.4 

4.6 
2.3 

7.3 

4.8 

13.0 
13.0 

4.6 
4.6 

8.8 
8.8 

8.4 
6.8 

1.5 

2.3 

2.5 

0.0 

0.0 

0.0 

1.6 

XII 
XII 

3.0 
3.0 

2.3 
2.3 

2.6 
2.6 

4.3 
5.2 

2.7 
4.6 

3.5 
4.9 

3.0 
3.7 

0.0 

0.0 

0.0 

—  .9 

—1.9 

—1.4 

—  .7 

XIII 
XIII 

3.0 
3.0 

1.8 

7.8 
3.4 

6.5 
1.8 

7.1 
2.6 

5.4 
2.7 

24  EXPERIMENTAL  STUDIES   OF  MENTAL  DEFECTIVES 

tire  population  (last  column),  it  is  seen  that  the 
differences  for  Ages  XI  and  XII  are  small,  1.6  and 
.7%,  respectively,  while  they  are  quite  material  for 
Ages  IX,  X  and  XIII,  namely,  6.4,  5.4  and  2.7%, 
respectively.  The  result  of  basing  the  grading  on 
the  highest  age  passed.  Method  A,  is  to  reduce  con- 
siderably the  number  of  IX-year-olds  and  slightly 
the  number  of  Xll-year-olds,  and  to  increase  the  X-, 
XI-  and  Xlll-year-olds,  particularly  the  first  and 
the  last.  (No  one  was  credited  with  Age  XIII  who 
did  not  pass  two  of  the  tests  in  that  age — drawing 
one  of  the  diamonds  was  accepted  as  satisfactory — 
or  who,  passing  Age  XIII,  did  not  pass  five  of  the 
nine  tests  in  Ages  XI  and  XII.  On  this  basis,  10 
who  passed  Age  XIII  were  rated  as  of  Age  XIII, 
while  12  failed.  Five  who  failed  in  Age  XI  passed 
Age  XII.  A  few  passed  X  and  XIII,  but  failed  on 
XI  and  XII.)  Below  the  ninth  year  the  distribution 
remained  the  same  except  in  three  ages — Ages  V 
and  VI  for  girls  (a  difference  of  2.4%  in  each  age), 
and  Age  VIII  for  women  (a  difference  of  .9%).  In 
respect  to  the  gross  grouping,  the  per  cents,  of  idiots, 
imbeciles  and  child  morons  remain  the  same,  but 
there  is  a  diminution  of  adult  male  (4.37%)  and 
female  (4.6%)  morons,  and  a  corresponding  increase 
of  Xlll-year-old  adults. 

In  comparing  the  results  for  the  children  and 
adults  it  is  seen  that  more  adults  than  children  ad- 
vance from  Age  IX  to  X  and  from  XII  to  XIII  by 
the  A-method.  Incidentally,  it  may  be  remarked  that 
the  differences  in  general  are  greater  for  the  adults, 
which  would  seem  to  indicate  a  greater  loss  of  lower- 
age  capacities  as  a  result  of  epileptic  degeneration. 
Among  the  children  there  is  no  difference  in  Ages 


TESTING  THE  BINET-SIMON  TESTS  25 

Xn  and  Xni.  The  girls,  however,  profited  more 
than  the  boys,  losing  more  in  IX  and  gaining  more 
in  X  and  XI — an  indirect  indication  of  the  intel- 
lectual superiority  of  the  boys  (to  which  we  shall 
revert  later),  since  a  larger  percentage  of  boys  were 
able  to  pass  the  harder  tests.  The  difference  be- 
tween the  men  and  women,  on  the  other  hand,  is 
insignificant. 

A  detailed  examination  was  made  of  the  individ- 
ual records  of  the  children  (used  in  the  sense  of  all 
imder  21  years  of  age),  in  order  to  determine  the 
amount  of  the  disturbance.  It  was  quite  consider- 
able in  one-third  of  the  103  cases  studied.  The  grad- 
ing of  70,  or  68%  of  the  103,  dropped  into  a  lower 
age  classification  when  the  B-method  was  used — 
sometimes,  of  course,  because  of  a  difference  of  only 
one  or  two  points.  But  in  some  cases  the  grading 
by  the  B-method  was  actually  higher.  This  is  due 
to  the  fact  that  some  ages  contain  more  than  five 
tests,  namely,  ages  VI,  VII,  VIII  and  IX.  This  ex- 
plains in  a  measure  why  the  grading  remained  prac- 
tically the  same  in  the  two  methods  for  the  middle 
ages.  Patients  who  failed  to  pass  Age  VI — and  all 
Vl-year-olds  did,  as  we  shall  see — but  passed  Age 
VII,  could  secure  a  higher  rating  from  Age  V  than 
from  Age  VII.  Finally,  the  rating  remained  in  the 
same  age  classification  with  the  two  methods  in  the 
case  of  32%  of  the  patients. 

With  14,  or  13%,  of  these  subjects  the  difference 
amounted  to  a  whole  year  (that  is,  five  points)  or 
more,  namely:  one  year  for  three  patients,  1.2*  for 
three,  1.4  for  two,  1.6  for  one,  2.0  for  one,  2.2  for 
two,  and  2.4  for  one. 

*One  point=:.2. 


26  EXPERIMENTAL   STUDIES    OF   MENTAL  DEFECTIVES 

The  range  of  the  possible  difference  of  rating,  due 
to  a  difference  in  the  method  of  computing  credits, 
.  will  be  seen  to  better  advantage  if  we  compare  our 
first  method,  A,  with  a  third  method,  C.  Instead  of 
using  the  average  of  the  rating  from  the  liighest  and 
lowest  ages  passed,  as  in  B,  let  us  use  only  the  lowest 
age  passed  as  the  base,  with  advance  credits  as  be- 
fore. The  difference  in  points  thus  amounts  to  one 
year  or  more  in  the  case  of  41,  or  39%  of  the  children, 
as  follows  : 

Difference   in  years 1.    1.2    1.4    1.6    1.8    2.    2.2    2.4    2.6    2.8    3.2 

Number  of   patients. .  .12     6361251221 

The  difference  thus  amounts  to  two  full  years  or 
more  in  the  case  of  thirteen  patients — truly  a  signifi- 
cant difference.  But,  large  as  these  discrepancies 
are,  the  question  may  still  be  raised  why  they  are  not 
yet  more  extreme,  since  some  patients  who  fail  to 
pass  a  lower  level  may  pass  sundry  tests  in  a  half- 
dozen  or  more  higher  ages,  and  all  the  tests  in  some 
one  age  (e.  g.,  Age  X)  three  or  four  years  higher 
than  the  lowest  age  satisfactorily  passed.  The  an- 
swer is  to  be  sought  in  the  corrective  formula  (one 
year  of  advance  credit  for  five  advance  points),  by 
virtue  of  which  subjects  may  gain  several  years  from 
the  lowest  age  passed.  Consequently  the  difference 
between  the  A-method  and  the  C-method  of  scoring, 
and  particularly  between  the  A-method  and  the  B- 
method,  are  oftentimes  quite  negligible. 

Since  the  difference  in  the  mental  station  or  classi- 
fication of  epileptics  may  amount  to  two  or  three 
years,  due  entirely  to  the  particular  method  of  grad- 
ing adopted,  it  is  evident  that  the  results  of  different 
workers  have  no  comparative  value  unless  precisely 


TESTING   THE   BINET-SIMON   TESTS  -< 

the  same  system  is  followed.  Accordingly,  I  adhered 
to  the  plan  prescribed  by  the  authors  (Binet-Simon), 
which  is  followed  by  the  workers  in  this  country, 
according  to  which  the  subjects  are  credited  with  the 
highest  age  passed  successfully  (all  the  tests  or  all 
but  one),  plus  advance  credits  (one  year  for  five 
points) :  in  other  words,  I  followed  what  I  have 
termed  Method  A  of  scoring. 

Our  survey  of  the  facts  up  to  this  point  justifies 
the  following  conclusions : 

(1)  A  difference  in  the  method  of  grading  may 
perceptibly  alter  the  distribution  of  homogenous 
groups  of  patients,  particularly  in  Ages  VI,  IX,  X 
and  XIII,  and  in  the  moron  and  retardate  groups, 
and  may  thus  vitiate  results  for  comj^arative  pur- 
poses. 

(2)  This  difference  in  rating  may  vary  from  con- 
siderably less  than  one  year  to  more  than  two  3'ears. 

(3)  The  obvious  effect  of  the  standard  method  of 
rating.  A,  is  to  elevate  the  grading  (except  in  a  few 
of  the  middle  ages) :  ejnleptics  failing  at  lower  levels 
often  pass  higher  ages. 

(4)  Tlie  B.-S.  Age  IX  is  more  difficult  than  Age 
X,  and  apparently  Ai2;e  XII  than  Age  XIII,  for  epi- 
leptics. 

(5)  Although  it  is  advisable  to  follow  the  Binet- 
Simon  method  of  accrediting  (adding  advance  j^oints 
to  the  highest  age  passed),  it  is  ol)vious  tliat  when 
very  large  jiercentages  of  homogenous  grou])s  fail 
at  certain  lower  levels  while  ])assing  a  higher  level 
we  have  strong  presum])tive  evidence  that  we  are 
dealing  either  with  si)e(*ial,  aberrant  or  deviating 
groups  of  individuals,  or  with  an  unsatisfactory  con- 
struction or  arrangement  of  the  tests.    A  variation 


28  EXPERIMENTAL  STUDIES    OF  MENTAL  DEFECTIVES 

of  two  years  and  more  must  point  to  inherent  defects 
in  the  scale,  or  fundamental  abnormalities  or  depart- 
ures in  the  mental  organization  of  the  subjects 
tested. 

(6)  Finally,  so  far  as  concerns  our  fundamental 
query,  it  is  possible  that  both  the  wide-range  method 
of  testing  and  the  method  of  grading  may  partly 
account  for  our  skewed  epileptic  curve.  For  exam- 
ple, the  A-method  of  scoring  decreased  the  per  cent, 
of  IX-year-olds  about  6.5%  and  increased  the  num- 
ber of  X-  (particularly)  and  the  number  of  XIII- 
year-olds,  as  may  be  seen  from  Table  II.  Likewise, 
it  is  seen  from  Table  III  that,  while  90%  of  those 
grading  IX  passed  this  standard  by  virtue  of  ad- 
vance credits,  94%  of  those  who  grade  X  passed  the 
tests  of  that  age.  Accordingly,  the  skew  in  the  curve 
at  X — and  this  is  the  most  obvious  skew — is  inde- 
pendent of  the  method  of  scoring.  So  far  as  con- 
cerns our  present  purpose,  the  method  of  scoring 
may,  therefore,  probably  be  neglected,  more  particu- 
larly because  it  has  conformed  with  the  prevailing 
usage,  thus  rendering  the  results  comparable  with 
the  findings  of  other  investigators.  Consequently 
it  will  be  necessary  to  study  more  closely  the  wide- 
range  method  of  testing. 


TESTING  THE   BINET-SIMON   TESTS 


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30  EXPERIMEXTAL   STUDIES    OF   MENTAL  DEFECTIVES 

The  importance  of  this  factor  may  be  seen  by  re- 
ferring to  Table  III,  which  shows  that  in  not  more 
than  five  ages  (III,  IV,  X,  XII,  XIII)  did  more  than 
60%  of  the  patients  successfully  pass  the  ages  in 
which  they  classify.  The  ages  which  make  the  worst 
showing  are  VI,  VII  and  IX,  particularly  VI  and  IX, 
which  proved  veritable  pontes  asinorum.  It  follows 
that  the  age  classification  of  the  majority  of  the  epi- 
leptics was  attained  on  the  basis  of  advance  points. 
Very  few,  except  in  Age  X,  passed  all  but  one  of  the 
tests  of  the  mental  age  assigned  them.  It  is  therefore 
apparent  that  any  B.-S.  testing  which  is  confined  to 
the  subject's  chronological  age  or  to  the  age  immedi- 
ately above  or  below  is  of  questionable  value,  if  not 
worthless,  and  is  positively  pernicious  to  the  inter- 
ests of  scientific  research  either  for  purposes  of 
diagnosis  or  classification  or  the  testing  of  the  scale. 

To  what  extent,  then,  is  the  wide-range  testing 
responsible  for  our  peculiar  curve  of  distribution? 
Owing  to  the  present  inaccessibility  of  the  original 
records,  I  cannot  answer  this  question  in  exact 
numerical  terms.  But  the  two  following  considera- 
tions would  seem  to  indicate  that  the  method  of  test- 
ing is  of  secondary  consequence. 

First,  it  is  probable  that  other  examiners  (particu- 
larly the  Vineland  workers,  with  whose  results  our 
curve  has  been  contrasted)  have  made  a  practice  of 
testing  the  mentality  of  the  examinees  at  least  two 
years  above  the  station  in  which  they  grade  (since 
the  basis  of  rating  has  been  uniformly  the  highest 
age  passed,  the  testing  of  lower  ages  can  be  entirely 
ignored).  In  case  this  is  granted  —  other  writers 
have  been  silent  on  this  point — the  fundamental 
question    reduces   merely    to    one    of   the    relative 


TESTING   THE   BINET-SIMON   TESTS  31 

amount  of  the  advance  credits  given — the  difference 
in  the  number  of  credits  which  may  be  gained  by 
testing  only  two  years  above  the  age  fully  passed  or 
by  testing  in  a  considerable  number  of  ages.  While 
we  have  found  numerous  epileptics  whose  capacities 
have  ranged  throughout  the  larger  part  of  the  scale, 
the  successes  higher  up  have  usually  been  sporadic 
and  exceptional,  so  that  it  is  entirely  probable  that 
the  great  majority  of  the  advance  credits  given  the 
epileptics  have  come  from  the  tico  adjacent  higher 
ages.  If  this  is  so,  the  peculiarities  in  the  curve  can- 
not be  due  primarily  to  the  wide-range  testing. 

Second,  while  the  system  of  advance  crediting 
from  a  wide-range  testing  effectually  conceals  the 
skew  which  should  have  appeared  in  the  curve  at 
Age  VI,  it  is  only  very  slightly  responsible  for  the 
skew  at  Age  X,  because  94%  of  those  who  grade  X 
pass  the  standard  for  this  age,  wliile  84%  of  them 
fail  on  the  IX-year  tests.  Not  only  so ;  an  examina- 
tion of  the  feeble-minded  classification  shows  that 
the  most  obvious  break  occurs  in  the  ninth  standard. 

It  is  thus  apparent  that  if  further  analysis  reveals 
other  significant  factors,  as  implied  in  the  foregoing 
statements,  the  methods  of  scoring  and  wide-range 
testing  must  be  given  a  sul)ordinate  place.  There 
are  three  methods  wliich  we  may  employ  for  a  fur- 
ther critical  examination  of  the  data : 


Percentagt  of  Epileptic  Ckildren  Patsing  Each  Individual  liinct-Simon  Tcrt,  irretpedive  ol  the  Age  i 
the  Childnn  are  Claasificd 


B.-S. 
Test. 

Boys- 

Girls- 

Range. 

,— Both  Sexes— N 
Avt. 
No.           % 

Ave. 
Range. 

r— Aves. 

Boys. 

% 

.  Each  Agr.-^ 

Both 

Gills.  Sexes. 

%             % 

No. 

% 

Range. 

No. 

% 

1 
2 
3 

11 
11 
11 

100 
90 
81 

19 

7 
6 
ti 

85 
66 
00 

a5 

18           !M 
17            82 
17            70 

24 

90 

67           82 

4 
(> 

12 
9 
12 

41 
.33 

58 

25 

7 

a 

57 
00 
83 

*vj 

10            47 
15            20 
18            00 

40 

44 

40            44 

17 

61 

15 

33 

18 

66 

00 

90 

47 

45 

48 

49 

40 

40 

100 
102 


:« 

10 

31 

.58 

36 

63 

37  M  88 

29  .34  68 


39  45  51  .30 

40  38  7:3  22  2S 


23 

17 

19 

57 

20 

00 

14 

14 

14 

14 

11 

18 

5 

00 

57  34 

59  30 


Ave  39  38  37 

B.-S.  Test :  the  tests  are  numbered  consecutively,  following  the  customary  order  (See  Form  I  of  the 
Skillman  blanks). 

No.::=number  lesled.  %=\>er  cent,  of  successes.  Range=<lifferencc  between  the  highest  and  lowest  per 
cents,  in  each  age.  Avcg.  for  each  age  represent  the  sum  of  all  the  tests  in  each  age,  divided  by  the  number 
of  tests. 

The  above  includes  all  the  epileptic  children  except  nine.  It  includes  four  boys  who  had  been  free  from 
attacks  for  over  two  years. 


TESTING  THE   BINET-SIMON   TESTS  33 

(1)  We  may  determine  the  percentage  of  suc- 
cesses (passing)  for  each  individual  test  of  the  entire 
scale  for  a  given  group  of  examinees,  irrespective 
of  the  ages  in  which  the  examinees  classify.  Such  a 
tabulation  for  all  the  epileptic  children  (all  under 
21)  appears  in  Table  IV.  The  records  for  the  adults 
are  not  now  available,  but  the  curves  for  the  children 
and  the  adults,  in  spite  of  various  interesting  differ- 
ences, have  the  same  general  characteristics  (Table 
I).  As  will  be  seen  from  Columns  2  and  5,  Table  IV, 
the  number  of  children  put  through  each  test  differs 
considerably,  but  the  percentages  of  successes  are  in 
all  cases  based  upon  the  number  examined  for  the 
given  test. 

(2)  We  may  determine  the  per  cent,  of  successes 
in  each  individual  test,  based  only  on  the  records  of 
those  subjects  who  classify  in  the  age  to  wliich  the 
test  has  been  assigned.  That  is  to  say,  we  determine 
what  percentage  of  patients  who  grade  VI  pass  each 
one  of  the  Vl-year  tests,  what  per  cent,  of  the  VII- 
year-olds  pass  each  of  the  eight  tests  of  that  age,  etc. 
With  this  object  in  view,  the  data  for  the  children 
have  been  retabulated  in  Table  V.  If  the  tests  in 
each  age  are  relatively  equi-difficult,  tlie  successes 
should  be  approximately  equal  for  the  different  tests 
of  the  same  age.  This  method  could  be  extended  so 
as  to  include  a  determination  of  the  per  cent,  of  suc- 
cesses for  each  test  in  both  lower  and  higher  ages. 
What  per  cent,  of  subjects  who  grade  V,  VI  or  VII 
pass  each  of  the  tests  in  Age  III  or  IV? 


34 


EXPERIMENTAL   STUDIES    OF   MENTAL  DEFECTIVES 


TABLE    V. 

Percentages  of  Children  Passinp  the  InrlivMual  Tests  in  the  Binet-Simon 

Ages  in  uhich  they  are  Graded. 


AGES   I   AND   II.       Both 
-Bovs — ^  , —  Girls — v    Sexei?. 


AGE   III.  Both 

-Bovs — ,  , —  Girls — ,    Sexes. 


Test 

.  No 

7r  M.V. 

N 

X  % 

M.V 

%  M.V. 

Tes 

t.  No.  %  M.V. 

No.  % 

M.V 

7c  M.V 

1... 

.  7 

100 

2 

100 

100 

7. . 

.  4  100 

3 

33 

71 

2. 

100 

100 

100 

8!'. 

00 

66 

26 

Z... 

83 

50 

75 

9.. 

100 

66 

85 

4... 

43 

50 

58 

10.. 

100 

66 

85 

5. .. 

28 

00 

22 

U.. 

100 

100 

100 

6... 

28 

.50 

33 

Ave. 

63 

.30 

58 

.27 

64 

.27 

Ave 

80 

.32 

66 

.13 

73 

.20 

AGE 

IV. 

AGE 

V. 

12... 

.  5 

100 

4 

100 

100 

16.. 

.  1  100 

2 

50 

66 

13... 

100 

75 

88 

17.. 

00 

100 

66 

14... 

60 

75 

66 

18.. 

00 

50 

33 

15... 

80 

25 

55 

19.. 

100 

50 

66 

Ave. 

85 

.15 

68 

.22 

77 

.17 

Ave 

50 

.50 

62 

.17 

58 

.12 

AGE 

VI. 

AGE 

VII. 

20... 

.  4 

50 

6 

66 

60 

27.. 

.  5   80 

6 

100 

90 

21... 

00 

00 

00 

28.. 

60 

100 

82 

22... 

75 

50 

60 

29.. 

100 

100 

100 

23... 

50 

50 

50 

30.. 

40 

33 

36 

24... 

25 

66 

50 

31.. 

40 

16 

27 

25... 

25 

5 

00 

10 

32.. 

60 

33 

45 

26... 

75 

66 

70 

33.. 
34.. 

80 
80 

100 
66 

90 

72 

Ave. 

42 

.16 

42 

.12 

42 

.13 

Ave 

67 

.17 

68 

.31 

67 

.24 

AGE 

Till. 

AGE 

IX. 

35... 

.  9 

66 

6 

66 

66 

41.. 

.  6  100 

3 

66 

88 

36... 

55 

50 

53 

42.. 

100 

100 

100 

37... 

44 

100 

66 

43.. 

50 

33 

44 

38... 
39... 

55 
11 

33 
66 

46 
33 

44.. 
45.. 

16 
33 

2 

00 
00 

11 

22 

40... 

77 

66 

73 

46.. 

33 

66 

44 

Ave. 

51 

.16 

63 

.14 

56 

.12 

Ave 

55 

.29 

44 

.33 

51 

.28 

AGE 

X. 

AGE 

XL 

47... 

.  16 

93 

8 

87 

88 

51.. 

.  6   50 

2 

50 

50 

48... 

100 

75 

91 

.52... 

66 

100 

75 

49... 

87 

75 

83 

53.. 

33 

50 

37 

50... 

68 

87 

75 

54.. 
55.. 

33 
33 

50 
00 

37 
25 

Ave. 

87 

.09 

81 

.06 

84 

.05 

Ave 

43 

.12 

50 

.20 

45 

.14 

AGE 

XII. 

AGE 

XIIL 

56... 

.  2 

50 

1 

100 

66 

60.. 

100 

57... 

50 

100 

66 

61... 

100 

58... 

50 

00 

33 

62.. 

50 

59... 

50 

100 

66 

Ave. 

50 

.00 

75 

.37 

58 

.12 

Ave 

83 

.22 

Test=numher  of  individual  B.-S.  test.  No.=number  of  patients  examined. 
M.  V.=mean  variation  (between  the  different  subjects'  scores  based  on  the 
figures  given  in  the  per  cent,  columns). 

Average  M.  V."s  for  all  ages,  except  XIII:  boys,  .20;  girls,  .21;  both 
sexes,  .17. 

Average  per  cents,  for  all  ages,  except  XIII :  boys,  .61 ;  girls,  .61. 


TESTING   THE   BIXET-SIMON   TESTS  35 

(3)  We  may  determine  what  percentage  of  pa- 
tients classifying  in  a  given  higher  age,  say  VIII, 
IX  or  X,  fail  to  pass  any  of  the  lower  age-norms  (not 
individual  tests,  but  the  age  standards).  For  exam- 
ple, how  many  X-year-olds  do  not  pass  Age  VI?  This 
throws  light  on  the  collective  difficulty  of  the  tests 
of  various  ages.  For  this  study  we  have  two  sets  of 
data,  one  incomplete  and  the  other  complete.  The 
incomplete  data  for  276  juvenile  and  adult  epileptics, 
Table  III,  were  originally  gathered  for  another  pur- 
pose, namely,  the  determination  of  the  per  cent,  of 
patients  who  passed  ages  immediately  adjacent  to 
that  in  which  they  classified.  No  record  was  made 
of  the  ages  in  which  they  did  not  pass  any  tests  at 
all ;  however,  for  some  of  the  patients  the  data  cover 
more  than  the  years  contemplated.  This  explains 
why  the  per  cents,  in  some  cases  are  based  on  many 
subjects,  but  in  other  cases  on  only  a  few.  More- 
over, data  based  on  only  a  few  cases  have  not  always 
been  tabulated.  In  the  absence  of  the  original  rec- 
ords, these  defects  cannot  now  be  remedied.  But,  in 
spite  of  these  defects,  a  comparison  of  the  ages  in 
Tables  VI  and  III,  which  are  com]iarable,  indicates 
that  the  data  are  sufficiently  reliable  for  our  j)ur- 
pose.  In  Table  VI  we  have  in  complete  form  for  the 
entire  population  of  the  institution  the  percentage 
of  patients  between  the  B.-S.  Ages  of  IX  and  XI IE 
who  pass  Age  IX  and  the  per  cent,  of  those  between 
Ages  VI  and  X  who  pass  Age  VI. 

What,  now,  does  a  critical  examination  of  our 
tables  reveal! 


36  EXPERIMENTAL  STUDIES    OF  MENTAL  DEFECTIVES 

TABLE   VI. 
Percentage  of  Epileptics   Grading  from  IX  to  XIII  who  pass  the  B.-B. 
Standard  for  Age  IX.  _ 

Entire 

Both  Popu- 

B.-S.    Boys.     Girls.     Sexes.     Men.  Women.  Adults.  Males.  Females,  latlon. 

Age.  No.  %  No.  %  No.  %  No.  %  No.  %  No.  %  No.  %  No.  %  No.  % 

IX  6  16  3  33  9  22  10  10  9  00  19  05  16  12  12  08  28  10 

X  16  37  8  00  24  25  27  15  32  12  59  13  43  23  40  10  83  16 

XI  6  82  2  00  8  62  15  20  5  00  20  15  21  38  7  00  28  28 

XII  2  100  1  100  3  100  5  60  3  66  8  62  7  71  4  75  11  72 

XIII  2  100  50  9  66  7  85  16  75  11  72  7  85  18  78 

Ave.  67  33  51  34  32  34  43  23^  40 

percentage  of  Epileptics  Grading  from  VI  to  X  who  pass  the  B.-8.  8ta/ndard 

for  Age  VI. 

VI400600    10     0070050012001100    1100    22     00 

VII     5      00      6      33    11      18      9      00    12      00    21     00    14      00    18      11    32      06 

VIII     9      44      6      33    15      40    20      10    20      25    40     17    29      20    26      26    55      27 

IX     5      60      3      66      8      62    10      70      9      44    19      58    15      66    12      38    27      50 

X  14      78      8      87    22      81    23      65    31      48    54      55    37      70    39      56    76      63 

Ave.  36  43  40  29  23  26  31  26  29 

Age,  the  age  in  which  the  patients  grade.     No.,  number  of  patients  in- 
cluded in  the  average   (including  those  who  pass  and  fail).    %,  per  cent, 
passing.    This  includes  all  who  did  not  fail  in  more  than  one  test  in  each 
age. 
^Exclusive  of  85%  in  Age  XIII. 

In  Table  IV  we  find  a  surprisingly  large  variation 
in  the  difficulty  of  the  individual  tests,  both  fot  the 
boys  and  the  girls,  ranging  from  100%  (first  test, 
Age  I,  boys)  to  0%  of  successes.  Since  this  variation 
is  between  tests  occurring  in  any  part  of  the  scale,  it 
is  significant  only  because  of  its  extreme  character, 
for  a  large  variation  will  inevitably  occur  when  sub- 
jects of  very  varying  capacities  are  tested  through- 
out a  large  part  of  a  graded  scale  and  the  results  are 
thrown  together.  The  more  stupid  will  necessarily 
fail  on  all  the  higher  tests,  and  the  brighter  will  suc- 
ceed on  all  the  lower  ones.  Hence,  all  that  could  be 
demanded,  at  the  utmost,  is  that  the  lower-grade 
subjects  find  the  high-grade  tests  in  the  same  ages 
about  equally  difficult,  and  the  high-grade  subjects 
the  tests  in  the  same  lower  ages  about  equally  easy. 
Accordingly,  we  are  justified  in  comparing  only  the 
tests  of  the  same  ages.  Assuming  that  these  are 
fairly  uniform  in  difficulty,  the  percentage  of  fail- 


TESTING  THE  BINET-SIMON   TESTS  37 

ures  should  be  approximately  the  same  for  all  the 
tests  of  the  same  age. 

It  is  patent  from  a  cursory  glance  at  Table  IV, 
however,  that  there  is  a  wide  difference  between  the 
tests.  This  is  seen  most  rapidly  by  comparing  the 
*' range"  columns.  The  range  between  the  highest 
and  lowest  per  cent,  of  successes  in  each  age  aver- 
ages 37%  for  the  thirteen  years.  The  general  aver- 
ages are  practically  the  same  for  the  boys  and  the 
girls,  although  there  are  striking  differences  for 
some  of  the  ages.  The  largest  range  is  between  the 
tests  of  Age  VI,  62% ;  XII,  57%,  and  IX,  56% ;  and 
the  smallest  between  Ages  IV,  11% ;  VIII,  21%,  and 

I,  24%.  The  order  differs  somewhat,  however,  for 
the  boys  and  the  girls,  the  largest  range  for  the  boys 
being  in  Ages  VI,  IX  and  XII,  and  for  the  girls  in 

II,  VI  and  XII,  in  the  order  given.  The  smallest  are 
in  Ages  IV,  I  and  VIII  for  the  boys,  and  X,  IV  and 
XIII  for  the  girls. 

If  we  now  regard  the  collective  (average)  difficulty 
of  tests  of  the  same  ages,  we  again  find  a  very  con- 
siderable variation.  The  most  difficult  ages  are 
XIII  (14%  of  successes),  XII  (21%),  XI  (22%)  and 
IX  (37%),  and  the  easiest  I  (82%),  III  (76%),  IV 
(72%)  and  V  (69%).  The  order  is  the  same  for  the 
boys  and  girls  considered  separately,  except  that  II 
displaces  IX  for  the  boys  in  the  difficult  set,  and  III 
and  IV  exchange  places  in  the  easy  series.  The  aver- 
ages for  the  boys  and  girls  are  not  appreciably  dif- 
ferent, except  in  Ages  I,  III,  VEIT,  IX  and  X. 

It  is  evident,  however,  from  what  has  been  said 
that  averaging  the  per  cent,  of  successes  by  ages  in 
this  fashion  (last  three  columns  of  Table  IV)  is  val- 
uable chiefly  for  purposes  of  comparing  the  relative 


38  EXPERIMENTAL   STUDIES    OF   MENTAL  DEFECTIVES 

efficiencies  of  the  sexes  in  the  same  ages,  and  not 
primarily  for  the  purpose  of  comparing  the  diffi- 
culty of  the  various  ages.  The  method  is  faulty  for 
the  latter  purpose,  particularly  as  affects  the  ex- 
treme ages  in  the  scale,  because,  since  the  patients 
were  tested  throughout  a  large  extent  of  the  scale, 
some  comparatively  high-grade  subjects  were  tested 
on  the  lower  tests,  while,  vice  versa,  some  low-grade 
subjects  were  tested  in  the  higher  ages.  The  tend- 
ency, therefore,  is  to  decrease  the  real  difficulty  of 
the  lower  ages  and  to  increase  that  of  the  upper 
ages.  This,  indeed,  the  results  show.  If,  therefore, 
we  confine  the  comparison  to  the  middle  range  of  the 
scale,  V  to  IX,  inclusive,  where  these  tendencies  may 
neutralize  one  another,  we  find  that  Ages  IX  and  VI 
are  the  most  difficult,  followed  hy  VIII,  VII  and  V 
(decreasing  order).  This  conforms  substantially 
with  the  data  in  Tables  V  and  VII,  to  which  we  now 
turn. 

The  latter  enable  us  to  make  a  more  reliable  com- 
parison between  the  difficulties  of  the  different  tests 
of  the  same  age,  and  indirectly  between  the  relative 
collective  difficidty  of  the  different  ages,  for  here,  as 
explained,  the  per  cents,  of  successes  for  a  given  test 
are  based  on  the  testing  of  those  subjects  only  who 
classify  in  the  age  in  which  the  test  has  been  placed. 

The  variation  between  the  different  tests  of  the 
same  age  appears  most  readily  from  an  examination 
of  the  M.  V.  and  ''range"  columns.  The  average 
M.  V.  for  all  ages  amounts  to  .17,  a  very  considerable 
fraction  of  the  size  of  the  average  per  cents.  (.61).  It 
is  practically  the  same  for  the  boys  and  the  girls, 
although  there  is  considerable  difference  in  a  few  of 
the  ages. 


TESTING  THE   BINETSIMON  TESTS  39 

TABLE    VII. 

Ranges  betic(^n  the  Highest  and  the  Lowest  per  cents,   of  successes 
recorded  for  the  tests  of  eneh  Age  in  Table  V. 

Ages  I  &  II.  III.  IV.  V.  VI.  VII.  VIII.   IX.  X.  XI.  XII.  XIII. 

Boys 72    100  40  100  72  GO      60      84  32  33      00      oO 

Girls 100      67  72  50  m  84      67    100  12  100    100 

Children  .     78      74  45  33  70  73      40      89  16  50      33 

The  general  averages  for  all  Ages,  except  XIII,  are  as  follows: 
boys,  60%  ;  girls,  74%  ;  both  sexes,  54%. 

The  M.  V.  amounts  to  more  than  .25  in  seven  cases : 
Ages  I-II,  boys  and  girls;  III,  boys;  VII,  girls;  IX, 
boys  and  girls;  and  XII,  girls  (exclusive  of  Age  Xj 
boys).  The  ranges  (Table  VII)  are  also  very  large 
for  these  ages,  the  seven  largest  ranges  being  in 
Ages  I-II,  boys ;  III,  boys ;  VII,  girls ;  IX,  boys  and 
girls;  XI,  girls;  and  XII,  girls.  Five  of  these 
amount  to  1.00  and  two  to  .84.  The  average  of  the 
ranges  for  the  years  I  to  XII,  inclusive,  reaches  the 
very  considerable  sum  of  .54.  It  is  somewhat  larger 
for  the  girls  than  the  boys. 

On  the  other  hand,  considering  the  miuimal  varia- 
tions, we  find  the  M.  V.  to  be  less  than  .17  in  the  fol- 
lowing ages :  III,  girls ;  IV,  boys ;  Yl,  boys  and  girls  ; 
VIII,  boys  and  girls;  X,  boys  and  girls;  XII,  boys. 
In  some  of  these  ages  we  also  find,  correspondingly, 
the  smallest  ranges,  namely.  Ages  IV,  boys;  X,  boys 
and  girls;  XI,  boys;  XII,  ])oys  and  girls.  The 
smallest  range  comes  in  Age  X. 

If  we  consider  only  the  general  averages  (the  av- 
erages for  the  two  sexes),  the  Idrprst  M.  V.\^  (from 
.20  to  .28)  are  in  the  following  ages:  I-IT,  111,  Vll 
and  IX,  and  the  largest  ranges  in  Ages  I-II,  HI,  ^MI 
and  IX.  The  smallest  M.  V.'s  (from  .14  to  .05)  are 
in  the  following  ages:  V,  VI,  VIII,  X,  XI  and  XII, 


40  EXPERIMENTAL  STUDIES   OF  MENTAL  DEFECTIVES 

and  the  smallest  ranges  in  the  following:  V,  VIII, 
X  and  Xn. 

Summarizing  these  results,  it  appears  that,  if  we 
exclude  Ages  I-II  as  representing  two  years  rather 
than  one,  the  greatest  variation  occitrs  between  the 
tests  of  Ages  III,  VII,  and  particularly  IX,  and  that 
the  greatest  uniformity  obtains  in  VIII,  X  (dis- 
tinctly), XI  and  XII  (less  decidedly  in  IV  and  VI). 

The  question  now  naturally  arises  whether  the 
collective  difficulty  {average  per  cent,  of  successes 
for  all  the  tests  of  a  given  age)  is  greatest  for  the 
most  variable  age-norms.  Reference  may  be  made 
to  three  tables  to  obtain  light  on  this  question.  On 
the  basis  of  the  average  per  cents,  in  Table  V,  there 
appears  to  be  no  correlation.  The  group  average  for 
Ages  III,  VII  and  IX  is  .64  {.66  for  boys  and  .59  for 
girls),  and  for  Ages  X,  XI,  XII,  IV  and  VI  .61  (prac- 
tically the  same  for  the  boys  and  the  girls).  The  per 
cents,  in  Table  V,  however,  do  not  represent  the 
number  of  patients  who  passed  the  age-norms,  as  in 
Table  III.  In  the  latter  table  the  successes  (329^) 
for  the  group  of  variable  age-norms  are  appreciably 
less  than  for  the  group  with  more  uniform  tests 
(49%).  It  is  noteworthy  that  the  successes  are  above 
63%  in  three  ages  (IV,  X  and  XII)  where  the  varia- 
tion is  small,  and  in  only  one  age  where  the  variation 
is  large  (Age  HI),  and  that  the  successes  are  sur- 
prisingly small  in  the  remaining  two  ages  having 
unequal  tests  (VII  and  IX.  Cf.  also  Table  VI).  In 
the  case  of  Age  VI,  however,  the  variation  is  small, 
although  this  is  a  very  difficult  age  (Tables  III  and 
VI). 

It  is  therefore  apparent  that  there  is  a  greater 
variation  between  the  tests  of  a  difficult  than  an  easy 


TESTING  THE  BINET-SIMON  TESTS  41 

age-standard,  although  this  need  not  always  be  so. 
If  the  tests  of  a  given  age  are  uniformly  difficult,  the 
variation  will  be  small,  and  the  same  is  true,  of 
course,  if  they  are  uniformly  easy.  But  they  are 
more  liable  to  be  uniformly  easy  than  uniformly 
difficult. 

The  most  striking  result  which  our  analysis  of  the 
M.  V.'s  and  ranges  for  the  ages  has  thus  far  shown 
is  the  amazing  lack  of  uniformity  between  the  diffi- 
culty of  the  tests  of  the  same  age-norms  for  fully 
half  of  the  ages  of  the  scale — amazing  from  the 
standpoint  of  the  precision  demanded  by  the  stand- 
ards of  scientific  work.  Moreover,  we  have  also  seen 
that  the  collective  difficulty  of  different  age-stand- 
ards differs — to  how  great  an  extent  may  be  seen  by 
a  re-examination  of  Tables  III  and  VI.  The  per 
cents,  of  passing  range  from  .00  to  100%.  (The  lat- 
ter may  be  ignored,  as  it  is  for  the  final  age  in  the 
scale,  and  all  who  passed  this  standard  could  only 
do  so  by  virtue  of  the  tests  of  this  standard  itself). 
The  successes  exceed  70%  in  only  four  ages  (III,  IV, 
X  and  XIII),  and  reach  less  than  42%  in  six  ages 
(V,  VI,  VII,  VIII,  IX  and  XI).  The  most  difficult 
age-norms  are  VI  (00%  of  passing),  IX  (10%)  and 
VII  (13%);  and  the  easiest  III  (.73%),  X  (84%), 
XII  (58%),  and  XIII  (100%).  The  last  age  may  be 
neglected  for  the  reason  given,  and  III  and  XII  be- 
cause of  the  fewness  of  the  subject  tested  in  these 
ages.  We  thus  obtain  for  epileptics  one  specially 
easy  age-standard,  X,  and  several  specially  difficult 
age-standards.  In  order  to  study  more  thoroughly 
the  two  most  difficult  ages,  VI  and  IX,  the  data  for 
the  juvenile  and  adult  epilei)tics  were  retabulated  as 
appears  in  Table  VI  (which  see). 


42  EXPERIMENTAL  STUDIES   OF  MENTAL  DEFECTIVES 

"With  this  surprisingly  wide  range  in  the  difficulty 
of  the  Binet-Simon  age-norms  demonstrated,  we  are 
forced  to  meet  a  fundamental  question,  namely:  In 
order  that  a  measuring  scale  of  intelligence  shall 
approximate  the  character  of  scientific  measures, 
what  amount  of  variation  in  the  difficulty  of  the  tests 
of  the  same  age  shall  he  considered  as  the  maximal 
permissible?  What  percentage  of  normal  children 
should  pass  the  tests  designated  as  criteria  of  their 
chronological  ages  in  order  that  the  tests  shall  con- 
stitute scientific  standards  for  these  ages  ?  It  is  evi- 
dent that  if  only  a  small  per  cent,  of  typical  children 
pass  the  standard  tests  the  latter  are  worthless.  It 
is  equally  evident  that  100%  of  passing  is  also  out 
of  the  question,  because  normal  children  will  differ 
considerably  in  various  traits  and  capacities,  some 
being  strong  in  one  trait  and  some  strong  in  another. 
We  may  thus  regard  as  perfectly  normal  a  certain 
amount  of  variation  in  the  capacities  of  children  of 
the  same  ages  and  training.  Moreover,  mental  meas- 
urements are  variables,  and  not  absolute  constants. 
Consequently  the  standards  of  each  age  must  consist 
of  a  number  of  tests,  sufficiently  comprehensive  to 
survey  a  variety  of  fimdamental  mental  traits  and 
capacities.  And  the  difficulty  of  these  tests  (and  the 
scoring)  must  be  so  adjusted  that,  while  one  test 
may  be  too  hard  for  one  child  and  another  too  easy, 
the  majority  of  children  should  be  able  to  pass  the 
collective  standard,  i.  e.,  their  age-norm.  To  be  more 
specific,  I  should  hold  that  if  75%  of  normal  {so- 
called)  children  fail  to  pass  their  age-norms,  the 
norms  are  too  difficult.  Some  of  the  tests  must  be 
transposed  or  eliminated. 

On  the  basis  of  this  standard,  it  appears  that  only 


TESTING  THB  BINET-SIMON  TESTS  43 

two  age-norms  are  properly  constructed,  so  far  as 
the  testing  of  the  epileptics  is  concerned,  namely, 
III  and  X  (Age  IV  falls  short  by  4%).  Half  of  the 
ages  do  not  even  approximately  satisfy  the  require- 
ments. In  fact,  we  may  lay  down  this  rule:  that 
epileptics  do  not  qualify  for  a  given  age  on  the  basis 
of  satisfying  the  requirements  of  that  age,  but  on  the 
basis  of  the  system  of  advance  credits  from  higher 
ages. 

To  what,  then,  are  the  demonstrably  large  varia- 
tions in  the  difficulty  of  the  various  Binet-Simon  age- 
norms  due!  Are  they  due  primarily  to  inherent  de- 
fects in,  and  misplacements  of,  the  tests  themselves — 
defective  horizontal  and  vertical  arrangement — or 
to  fundamental  deviations  or  abnormalities  in  the 
epileptic  mind!  To  answer  this  question  satisfac- 
torily we  must  still  ascertain  what  particular  tests 
produced  the  greatest  'mortality ' — were  too  difficult — 
and  what  particular  tests  were  too  easy.  More  than 
that,  we  must  determine  whether  the  tests  found  too 
difficult  or  too  easy  for  epileptics  have  likewise  been 
found  too  difficult  or  too  easy  for  normal  children 
or  normal  adults. 

A  comparison  of  Tables  IV  and  V  (omitting  Ages 
I,  II  and  XIII,  on  account  of  the  insufficiency  of  the 
data)  indicates  that  the  following  tests  were  dis- 
tinctly too  difficult  for  epileptics : 

Age  V,  arranging  triangular  pieces  into  a  rec- 
tangle;^ VI,  repeating  16  syllables,'  executing  three 
commissions,  and  knowledge  of  own  age;  VII,  re- 
peating five  numbers,  drawing  a  diamond,  and  de- 

'The  BucoesR  for  this  test  is  hiRh  in  Table  IV,  because  it  was  given 
to  an  unusually  large  number  of  high-grade  aubjoots. 

'Namely :  "We  get  up  in  the  morning,  eat,  worlc  and  play,  and  then 
go  to  bed."     (Variant  forms  infrequently  employed.) 


44  EXPERIMENTAL  STUDIES    OF  MENTAL  DEFECTIVES 

scribing  actions ;  VIII,  counting  backward  and  copy- 
ing from  dictation ;  IX,  descriptive  or  classificatory 
definition,  six  memories,  giving  correct  change 
(25c. — 9,  or  8  or  7c.),  and  arranging  six  weights ;  XI, 
arranging  shuffled  words  into  a  sentence,  essential 
ideas  in  abstract  definitions,  and  uttering  60  words ; 
XII,  repeating  26  syllables,^  and  inferring  facts  from 
given  circumstances ;  and  XIII,  all  tests.  In  all  ex- 
cept one  of  the  above  tests  the  per  cent,  of  successes 
is  less  than  50 ;  in  most  of  them  decidedly  less.  The 
failures  for  the  higher  ages  are  not  brought  out 
properly  in  the  tables  because  of  the  form  of  the  tab- 
ulation and  because  of  the  fewness  of  the  subjects 
tested. 

While  the  tables  are  not  so  constructed  as  to  indi- 
cate which  tests  are  too  easy  (passed  in  lower  ages), 
I  came  to  feel  that  the  following  should  probably  be 
so  regarded :  Age  V,  counting  4  pennies ;  VII,  num- 
ber of  fingers  on  hands,  and  counting  13  pennies ;  IX, 
naming  days  of  week  in  order ;  X,  naming  moneys ; 
and  XII,  giving  rhymes. 

Since  the  above  was  written,  the  results  of  Kath- 
erine  Johnston's,^  Goddard's*  and  Bobertag's*  test- 
ing of  public-school  children  have,  opportunely,  ap- 

^Namely :  "The  other  day  I  saw  in  the  street  a  pretty  dog  who  car- 
ried in  his  mouth  a  basket  of  strawberries."     (No  variants  used.) 

''Katherine  L.  Johnston,  M.  Binet's  Method  for  the  Measuriement  of 
Intelligence. — Some  Results,  The  Journal  of  Experimental  Pedagogy, 
1:  1911,  24ff. 

'Henry  Herbert  Goddard,  Two  Thousand  Normal  Children  Meas- 
ured by  the  Binet  Measuring  Scale  of  Intelligence,  Pedagogical  Semi- 
nary, 18 :  1911,  p.  232f. 

*Otto  Bobertag,  Ueber  Intelligenzprufungen  (nach  der  Methode  von 
Binet  and  Simon),  Zcitsch.  fiir  angewandte  Psychologie,  5:  1911,  lOofiE. 


TESTING  THE  BINET-SIMON  TESTS  45 

peared.  These,  with  other  results  already  available,* 
will  better  enable  us  to  explain  the  inequalities  which 
we  have  found  in  the  scale. 

Miss  Johnston  tested  a  mixed  group  of  193  ele- 
mentary, and  25  high-school  girls  in  Sheffield,  Eng- 
land; Goddard's  assistants  tested  the  entire  school 
population  (1547)  of  the  first  six  grades  of  a  New 
Jersey  school  system,  and  Bobertag  tested  435  regu- 
lar and  special  pupils  in  the  schools  of  Breslau.  The 
former  followed  essentially  Binet's  latest  (1911) 
revision,  while  Goddard,  Bobertag  (with  certain  ex- 
ceptions) and  I  followed  the  1908  series. 

All  three  of  these  studies  confirm  some  of  my  sus- 
picions with  respect  to  the  accuracy  of  the  scale. 
Johnston  refers  to  one  girl  who  did  15  and  another 
23  tests  superior  to  the  age  in  which  she  classified, 
but  she  does  not  give  averages,  nor  any  intimation 
as  to  how  frequently  this  happened.  It  is,  as  we 
have  seen,  a  frequent  phenomenon  among  epilep- 
tics. "We  need  to  know  to  what  extent  it  appears 
with  normals  before  we  can  generalize  unequivocally 
about  abnormals.  She,  too,  found  pupils  who,  unable 
to  satisfy  an  inferior  age  standard,  passed  higher 

'The  following  studies  or  discussions  have  appeared  too  late  to  re- 
ceive notice  in  the  present  discussion : 

J.  C.  Bell.  Recent  Literature  on  the  Binet  Tests,  The  Journal  of 
Educational  Psychology,  3:  1912,  101  ff. 

Lewis  M.  Terman  and  11.  G.  Childs.  A  Tentative  Revision  and 
Extension  of  the  Binet-Simon  Measuring  Scale  of  Intelligence,  The 
Journal  of  Educational  Psychology,  3:  1912,  Glff,  133fif,  198flf. 

Edmund  B.  Iluey.  The  Present  Status  of  the  Binet  Scale  of  Tests 
for  the  Measurement  of  Intelligence,  Psychological  Bulletin,  9 :  1912, 
HiO  (a  review  of  the  literature). 

F.  Kuhlmann.  The  Present  Status  of  the  Binet  and  Simon  Testa 
of  the  Intelligence  of  Children,  Journal  of  Psycho-Asthcnict,  10:  1912, 
No.  3. 

An  abridged  discussion  of  the  relevancy  of  the  scale  will  be  found  in : 
J.  E.  Wallace  Wallin.  The  Present  Status  of  the  Binet-Simon  Graded 
Tests  of  Intelligence,  The  Alienist  and  Neurologist,  33 :  1912,  May. 


46  EXPERIMENTAL  STUDIES   OP  MENTAL  DEFECTIVES 

ones,  but  no  figures  are  given  to  show  how  frequently 
this  happened.  She  also  found  obvious  inequalities 
in  the  difficulty  of  the  age-norms.  Her  records  show 
that  of  30  9-year-old  girls  only  one  satisfied  the  IX- 
year  norm,  as  against  24  who  failed  and  5  who 
passed  Age  X.  Of  41  7-year-olds,  6  passed  their 
standard,  as  against  26  who  failed  and  9  who  passed 
Age  VIII.  Of  22  8-year-olds,  7  passed,  15  failed  and 
6  'Vent  above"  VIII.  Of  38  10-year-olds,  12  passed 
and  26  failed.  Of  24  12-year-olds,  5  pased,  18  failed 
and  one  passed  Age  XV.  These  figures  indicate 
that  there  is  a  wide  divergence  in  the  diflficulty  of  the 
tests  of  the  same  age,  and  that,  with  normal  {sic) 
English  girls,  the  standards  are  too  difficult,  as  a 
rule:  there  are  more  who  fail  than  reach  their  age- 
norms.  The  most  difficult  age-norm,  according  to 
Miss  Johnston,  was  Age  IX.  These  conclusions,  it 
must  be  remembered,  refer  to  the  latest,  or  1911,  ar- 
rangement of  the  B.-S.  tests. 

An  examination  of  Goddard's  table  (Table  I) 
shows  that  there  were  more  6-year-olds  who  could 
satisfy  the  VII-  than  the  Vl-year  norms  (69  against 
48) ;  that  a  larger  number  of  8-year-olds  stayed  in 
Age  VII  than  passed  Age  VIII  (87  vs.  86) ;  that 
very  few  of  the  8-year-olds  were  able  to  satisfy  the 
IX-year  tests  (only  16,  as  against  86  for  the  VEII- 
year  norms),  but  there  were  actually  more  9-year- 
olds  who  could  pass  the  X-  than  the  IX-year  norms 
(58  compared  with  56) ;  that  an  unusually  large 
number  of  10-year-olds  qualified  for  their  standard, 
while  an  appreciably  smaller  percentage  of  11-year- 
olds  qualified  for  the  Xl-year  standard;  and  that 
more  12-year-olds  classified  as  X  than  as  XII  (42 
vs.  39).    The  results  of  both  of  these  studies  of  pub- 


TESTING  THE  BINET-SIMON  TESTS  47 

lie  school  children  (Bobertag  gives  results  only  for 
the  individual  tests)  accordingly  confirm  my  find- 
ings, based  only  on  the  results  of  those  epileptics 
who  grade  in  the  various  Binet-Simon  ages  consid- 
ered, particularly  in  respect  to  the  disproportionate 
difficulty  of  Ages  VI  and  IX  and  the  dispropor- 
tionate ease  of  Age  X  (Miss  Johnston's  data,  it 
should  be  said,  to  avert  misapprehension,  are  based 
on  too  few  cases  for  Age  VI).  It  is  obvious  that  we 
must  conclude  that  there  is  a  faulty  vertical  arrange- 
ment of  the  tests  in  the  scale  as  at  present  consti- 
tuted. 

No  only  so :  our  findings  in  respect  to  the  individ- 
ual tests  are  also  confirmed,  at  least  in  part,  as  shown 
in  Table  VIII  for  the  tests  which  I  came  to  view  with 
most  suspicion.  In  this  table  the  conclusions  of 
Decroly  and  Degand,  Binet's  1911  revision,  and 
Johnston's,  Goddard's,  Bobertag 's  and  my  own  find- 
ings are  compared.  The  Skillman  figures  are  based 
on  Table  V.  Table  VIII  may  thus  advantageously 
be  studied  with  respect  to  our  fundamental  inquiry : 
Does  the  testing  of  normal  (so-called)  children  show 
that  our  anomalous  results  are  due  to  defects  in  the 
construction  of  the  scale  or  to  the  peculiar  mental 
organization  of  the  epileptic! 

A  study  of  Table  VIII  shows,  in  harmony  with  our 
findings,  that  the  following  tests  (with  certain  obvi- 
ous discrepancies)  are  too  difficult:  Age  V:  rear- 
ranging triangles,  by  G.  (Goddard)  and  Bo.  (Bober- 
tag). B.  (Binet)  retains  the  test,  however,  in  Age  V. 
VI:  repeating  16  syllables,  by  G.  (15%  of  successes). 
B.  omits  the  test.  VII:  repetition  of  five  numbers, 
by  J.  (Johnston)  and  B.,  who  elevates  the  test  to  Age 
VIII,  as  does  G.,  though  his  own  per  cent,  of  sue- 


48  EXPERIMENTAL  STUDIES    OF  MENTAL  DEFECTIVES 

cesses  in  VII  (74%)  indicates  that  it  is  about  right 
where  it  is.  Bo.  finds  it  properly  placed.  VIII: 
copying  dictation,  by  G. ;  B.,  sustaining  D.-D.'s  (De- 
croly  and  Degand)  objection  (training  test),  omits 
it,  but  Bo.  finds  it  rightly  placed.  IX :  giving  correct 
change,  by  G.  and  J.,  but  not  by  Bo.  (who  used 
100  —  20  =  80) .  Definition  by  description,  by  J.  and 
G.  Arranging  six  weights,  by  J.  and  Bo.,  and  ap- 
parently by  B.,  who  places  it  in  X,  while  D.-D.  would 
place  it  in  V  or  VI.  XII :  repetition  of  26  syllables, 
by  J.,  G.  and  B.,  but  too  easy  by  Bo.  if  the  sentence 
is  simple  and  meaningful.    XIII :  all  tests,  by  all. 


TESTING  THE  BINET-SIMON  TESTS 


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50  EXPERIMENTAL  STUDIES   OF  MENTAL  DEFECTIVES 

The  following  tests,  contrariwise,  proved  to  he  too 
easy,  in  harmony  with  my  results :  VII :  counting  13 
pennies,  by  B.,  Bo.  and  G.  D.-D.  object  to  the  test  as 
too  mechanical.  VIII :  naming  four  colors,  by  D.-D., 
B.  and  G.  (Our  VII-  and  Vlll-year-old  epileptics 
required  7.7  seconds,  and  IX-year-olds  5  seconds,  to 
name  the  colors.)  X:  naming  money,  by  Bo.,  B., 
who  has  dropped  it  to  IX,  and  perhaps  by  G.,  who 
finds  70%  of  successes  in  IX,  but  retains  it  in  X.  J., 
however,  found  it  too  hard.  XII :  three  rhymes,  by 
G.,  but  not  by  Bo.,  nor  by  B.,  who  has  raised  it  to 
XV  ( !) .  Counting  four  pennies  in  V,  which  appeared 
to  Bo.  and  myself  too  easy,  G.  and  B.  found  about 
right,  while  D.-D.  would  discard  it  as  a  training  test. 

The  following  tests,  which  I  found  too  hard,  would 
appear  to  he  properly  placed:  VII:  describing  ac- 
tions, by  B.  and  G.  YTil :  counting  from  20  to  0,  by 
B.,  Bo.  and  G.  (considered  a  training  test  by  D.-D.). 
IX:  6  memories  by  Bo.  and  G.,  but  too  hard  by  J. 
B.  omits  it  on  D.-D.'s  objection  (training).  (Our 
IX-year-old  epileptics  average  4.8  memories ;  our  X- 
year-olds,  5.3,  and  our  Xl-year-olds,  6.5). 

In  respect  to  the  following  tests  the  discrepancies 
are  more  patent  than  in  any  of  the  above  tests :  VI : 
three  commissions,  found  to  be  properly  placed  by 
G.,  too  easy  by  D.-D.  and  Bo.,  and  too  hard  by  B.  and 
myself.  VI :  giving  own  age,  distinctly  too  hard  for 
epileptics,  considered  valueless  by  Bo.,  omitted  by 
B.,  and  considered  a  training  test  by  D.-D.  XI :  ut- 
tering 60  words,  too  easy  by  D.-D.,  too  hard  by  Bo., 
right  for  Age  XII  by  J.  and  B.,  and  for  XI  by  G., 
and  too  hard  for  epileptics  (about  right  for  Age  XII, 
where  the  average  number  of  words  was  59.9).  XI: 
abstract  definitions  (justice,  charity,  kindness,  used 


TESTING  THE  BINET-8IM0N  TESTS  51 

at  Skillman),  right  for  Age  XII  by  B.  and  Bo.,  too 
hard  for  XII  by  J.,  slightly  too  hard  for  XI  by  G., 
and  distinctly  too  hard  for  XI  for  epileptics.  XI: 
rearranging  words,  right  for  XII  by  B.  and  Bo.,  and 
for  XI  by  G.,  too  hard  for  XII  by  J.,  and  distinctly 
too  hard  for  epileptics  of  Age  XI. 

Having  thus  surveyed  the  available  facts,  we  are 
now  in  a  position  to  formulate  a  number  of  impor- 
tant conclusions. 

(1)  The  marked  irregularities  in  our  curve  of 
intelligence  for  epileptics  are  partly  explained  by 
the  system  of  advance  scoring  from  a  method  of 
wide-range  testing,  and  by  the  method  of  combining 
the  records  of  a  large  number  of  adult  epileptics  and 
a  smaller  number  of  juvenile  epileptics  (the  propor- 
tion of  the  adults  among  the  epileptics  being  larger 
than  among  the  feeble-minded,  as  we  have  already 
seen).  It  might  be  assumed  that  the  latter  circum- 
stance— to  which  we  have  merely  adverted  in  the 
foregoing  pages — would  render  the  curve  more  or 
less  irregular,  for  a  defective  child  and  a  defective 
adult  whose  intellectual  strength  or  capacity  are  the 
same,  would  not  necessarily  test  out  exactly  the  same 
by  the  B.-S.  scale  as  at  present  constituted.  We 
have,  indeed,  already  noted  here  and  there  various 
differences  between  the  children  and  the  adults 
(others  will  be  noted  in  the  following  chapter),  and 
have  found  evidences  of  the  loss  of  lower-age  capaci- 
ties among  the  adults.  To  measure  the  influence  of 
this  factor,  however,  it  is  necessary  to  examine  the 
table  of  distribution  (Table  I),  and  particularly  the 
table  which  shows  the  number  of  higher-grade  sub- 


52  EXPERIMENTAL  STUDIES   OP  MENTAL  DEFECTIVES 

jects  who  pass  especially  the  crucial  ages,  Ages  VI 
and  IX  (Table  VI). 

In  the  first  table  it  is  seen  that,  while  there  are 
about  3%  more  children  than  adults  grading  VI 
years,  the  number  of  IX-year-olds  is  approximately 
the  same.  The  number  of  imbeciles  among  the  chil- 
dren, however,  is  considerably  higher  than  among 
the  adults,  while  the  number  of  morons  and  XIII- 
year-olds  is  noticeably  less.  In  Table  VI  it  is  seen 
that  of  those  testing  from  IX  to  XIII  years,  22%  of 
the  children  pass  the  IX-year  tests,  but  only  5%  of 
the  adults  (the  differences  for  Ages  X,  XI,  XII  and 
XIII  are  also  large,  due  possibly  to  the  small  num- 
ber of  patients  in  some  of  these  ages),  while  of  those 
testing  from  VI  to  X,  none  of  the  children  passes 
Age  VI,  as  against  11%  of  the  adults  (with  large 
differences  also  for  Ages  VII  to  X). 

While  it  is  thus  evident  that  an  adventitious  factor 
of  this  character — the  averaging  of  the  gradings  of 
defective  children  and  adults — will  distort  the  sym- 
metry of  the  frequency  curve,  an  examination  of  the 
separate  columns  for  children  and  adults  in  Table  I 
shows  that  skews  are  present  in  the  classifications 
of  each,  particularly  at  Ages  IX  and  X,  only  less 
prominently  for  the  children  than  for  the  adults. 
Hence,  we  appear  to  be  justified  in  the  conclusion 
that  the  distortions  in  our  curve  are  not  primarily 
caused  by  the  method  of  advance  scoring  from  wide- 
range  testing  or  by  the  merging  of  the  grades  of 
young  and  old  defectives. 

(2)  On  the  other  hand,  one  of  the  significant 
causes  of  our  skewed  curve  (skewed  certainly  as 
compared  with  the  curve  for  feeble-mindedness)  is 
the  intrinsic  defectiveness  of  the  measuring  scale, 


TESTING  THE  BINET-SIMON  TESTS  53 

for  our  analysis  has  demonstrated  that  there  is  a 
greater  discrepancy  in  the  B.-S.  1908  scale  (and  1911 
scale  so  far  as  Johnston's  results  indicate)  than  has 
hitherto  been  conceded  or  suspected.  Its  obvious 
inequalities  affect  not  only  some  of  the  individual 
tests  in  various  levels,  but  also  the  age-standards. 
Just  how  much  of  the  irregularities  can  be  ascribed 
to  the  defects  in  the  scale  it  is  impossible  to  deter- 
mine with  definiteness  until  a  re-examination  of  epi- 
leptics has  been  made  by  a  scale  rendered  maximally 
correct  and  standardized  for  "typical"  American 
children. 

(3)  It  is,  however,  not  only  probable,  but  reason- 
ably certain,  that  the  combined  influences  of  the  fore- 
going factors  does  not  suffice  fully  to  explain  our 
curve.  Three  affirmative  reasons  may  be  given  why 
another  factor,  namely,  the  peculiar  mental  make-up 
of  the  epileptic,  must  be  considered.  First,  an  in- 
spection of  Table  VIII  shows  that  the  percentage  of 
failures  on  the  difficult  tests  is  abnormally  large  for 
the  epileptics,  in  nearly  every  case  very  much  larger 
than  for  the  normal  groups,  so  that  the  correspond- 
ing traits  in  the  epileptics  have  at  least  suffered 
marked  impairment.  Second,  some  of  the  tests  ab- 
normally difficult  for  the  epileptics  do  not  always 
prove  difficult  for  the  normals.  Third,  failures  on 
some  of  the  tests  through  various  levels  imply  an 
impairment  of  the  same  or  related  functions.  Thus, 
the  epileptics  suffer  from  a  fundamental  impairment 
of  memory,  as  shown  by  consistent  failures  in  all  the 
tests  of  memory  span  (sentence  and  number  tests), 
by  the  inability  to  reproduce  six  units  from  reading 
a  short  passage  once,  by  the  inability  to  recall  their 
ages,  and  to  remember  and  execute  three  simple  com- 


54  EXPBRIMBNTAL  STUDIES   OP  MENTAL  DEFECTIVES 

missions.  They  are  also  markedly  retarded  or 
feeble  in  the  higher  thought  processes,  the  rational 
functions  brought  into  play  in  the  more  intellectual 
tests  and  in  the  tests  calling  for  an  adjustment  to 
new  situations.  This  is  shown  by  the  incapacity  to 
form  a  rectangle  from  two  triangular  pieces,  to  exe- 
cute a  triple  order,  to  construct  an  intelligible  sen- 
tence from  displaced  words,  to  give  descriptive  or 
classificatory  definitions  of  common  objects  or  ab- 
stract definitions  of  simple  qualities,  or  to  infer  facts 
from  given  situations  (the  situations  employed  in 
the  test,  it  may  be  conceded,  do  not  well  fit  American 
conditions),  or  to  utter  60  words  in  three  minutes. 
The  epileptics  suffer  from  a  pronounced  retardation 
of  rate  in  the  stream  of  thought  and  of  motor  re- 
sponse. They  apparently  also  suffer  from  a  blunt- 
ing of  the  kinesthetic  sensitivity :  the  threshold  of 
sensory  discrimination  for  lifted  weights  is  abnor- 
mally lowered.  To  carry  the  analysis  further,  how- 
ever, is  not  advisable  until  the  scale  has  been  more 
accurately  **  calibrated. "  When  this  has  been  done, 
its  value  for  individual  mental  diagnosis  will  be 
greatly  enhanced. 

While,  therefore,  the  peculiarities  in  our  curve  can 
be  partly  ascribed  to  extraneous  circumstances  and 
to  imperfections  in  the  scale,  they  also  implicate  in- 
herent anomalies  in  the  mentation  of  the  epileptic. 
In  fact,  our  B.-S.  testing  has  furnished  us  with  a 
picture  of  the  results  of  a  process  of  mental  wreck- 
age caused  by  pathological  processes  going  on  in  the 
afflicted  individual  or  by  a  neuropathic  heredity, 
whereby  the  integrity  of  various  mental  functions 
has  been  impaired  at  various  levels  of  mental  devel- 
opment, or  whereby  certain  lower  levels  of  mental 


TESTING  THE  BINET-SIMON  TESTS  55 

functioning  have  been  swept  away,  while  higher 
levels  have  remained  intact — ^mental  sentinels  that 
have  remained  to  tell  the  story  of  destruction.  This 
interesting  clinical  picture  of  mental  ruin  and  havoc 
is  still  incomplete  in  its  finer  delineations  and  invites 
further  psycho-clinical  research. 

(4)  Finally,  the  facts  brought  to  view  above 
should  make  it  patent  that  the  B.-S.  scale  is  still  in 
its  experimental  stages — a  fact  that  should  occasion 
no  surprise  when  we  consider  the  short  time  that  it 
has  been  in  use,  particularly  in  this  country.  It  still 
requires  a  thoroughgoing  tryout  and  revision.  Re- 
visions have,  indeed,  already  been  attempted  by 
Binet  and  Goddard.  In  some  respects  their  changes 
harmonize  with  the  requirements  of  our  comparative 
table  (Table  VII),  but  in  other  respects  not.  In  this 
table  only  the  tests  most  obviously  misplaced  for 
epileptics  have  been  compared  with  normal  perform- 
ances.) Since  there  is  considerable  disagreement  in 
the  conclusions  of  the  five  writers  who  have  worked 
with  normals  in  France,  Belgium,  Germany,  Eng- 
land and  the  United  States,  it  is  obvious  that  the 
question  cannot  be  considered  closed.  American  in- 
vestigators will  have  to  establish  norms  for  Ameri- 
can children.  The  studies  already  made  sufficiently 
indicate  that  a  test  too  difficult  for  children  of  one 
nationality  may  be  too  easy  for  those  of  another. 
For  American  workers  Goddard 's  results,  based  as 
they  are  upon  an  extensive  testing  of  American  chil- 
dren, are  the  most  suggestive.  But  it  appears  to  me 
wise  to  continue  the  use  of  the  1908  scale  until  more 
returns  are  in — until  we  have  tested  hirge  masses  of 
boys  and  girls  by  the  ivide-range  testing  to  wliich  I 
have  already  alluded.    It  is  questionable  whether  we 


56  EXPERIMENTAL  STUDIES   OF  MENTAL  DEFECTIVES 

can  calibrate  and  improve  the  scale  by  confining  the 
testing  to  a  very  limited  range  of  years. 

[Obviously,  this  work  will  require  the  earnest  co5peration  of  many 
psycho-clinicists.  More  than  that,  it  ought  to  receive  the  undivided 
time  and  attention  of  child  study  specialists — of  a  worker  or  group  of 
workers  who  can  devote  themselves  to  this  particular  service  as  a  life 
career.  In  my  judgment,  this  work  can  probably  not  be  done  effectively 
and  within  a  reasonable  time  unless  it  is  established  as  an  independent 
department  of  research.  The  clerical  labor  connected  with  investi- 
gations such  as  this  is  so  onerous  that  it  should  be  cared  for  by  a  force 
of  clerical  assistants.  At  the  present  time  all,  except  possibly  one,  of 
the  psycho-clinical  investigators  are  swamped  with  purely  clerical 
w^ork  (computing,  tabulating,  etc.),  and  must  use  up  their  best  energies 
in  purely  routine  and  mechanical  labor.  This  is  uneconomical  from 
the  standpoint  of  public  finance  and  the  conservation  of  the  nation's 
best  creative  brain  power.] 

The  further  improvement  of  the  scale,  we  may 
add,  requires  the  transposition  of  certain  tests,  the 
elimination  of  certain  others  which  seem  valueless, 
the  equalization  of  the  number  in  each  age  or  the 
proper  differential  adjustment  of  the  system  of  ac- 
crediting points,  and  the  increase  rather  than  the 
decrease  of  the  number  of  tests  for  each  age.  I  feel 
that  the  last  point  requires  emphasis.  We  need  to 
probe  a  considerable  number  of  traits  and  capacities 
for  the  reason  given  (p.  42)  if  we  would  arrive  at  a 
true  clinical  picture  of  the  child  or  a  correct  classifi- 
cation. We  cannot  hope  to  diagnose  or  grade  accu- 
rately if  we  test  only  a  few  capacities,  or  if  we  base 
our  judgments  on  only  a  few  symptoms.  The  ele- 
ment of  variation  in  human  traits  is  too  large.  What 
is  needed  is  a  well-balanced,  comprehensive  survey 
of  the  fundamental  human  mental  capacities.  The 
minimal  number  of  tests  for  each  age  should  be 
placed,  I  believe,  at  ten.  I  should  regard  it  as  unfor- 
tunate to  eliminate  such  tests  as  the  age,  writing  and 
reading  tests.  All  of  these  have  furnished  important 
information  with  respect  to  the  epileptic  (as  well  as 


TESTING   THE    BINET-SIMON   TESTS  57 

various  types  of  insane  patients  recently  tested). 
Nor  is  it  essential  to  eliminate  all  the  tests  which  are 
dependent  upon  training  (or,  indeed,  all  which  are 
pedagogical),  partly  because  this  is  not  desirable 
and  partly  because  this  is  impossible.  Nature  and 
nurture  proceed  hand  in  hand,  inseparable,  recipro- 
cal, interacting  and  independent  only  in  conception. 
Just  as  we  posit  a  normal  rate  of  development  which 
the  forces  of  human  nature  undergo — normal,  that 
is,  within  limits — so  we  may  posit  a  normal  curve  of 
development  within  variable  limits  for  a  given  order 
of  civilization  or  social  evolution,  which  human 
changes  follow  as  a  result  of  the  processes  of  nur- 
ture. We  cannot,  if  we  would,  test  merely  pure  na- 
tive capacity  uninfluenced  by  environmental  agen- 
cies, except  possibly  during  the  first  months  of  life. 
But  we  can  measure  native  capacity  as  modified  by 
the  environment.  In  this  country,  where  we  have 
fairly  uniform  standards  of  educational  require- 
ments in  the  schools,  there  would  seem  little  rea- 
son for  eliminating  some  of  the  more  funda- 
mental academic  tests.  A  child  of  eight  or  nine  who 
cannot  read  at  all  certainly  demonstrates  his  intel- 
lectual inferiority  thereby. 

To  repeat:  The  evidence  regarding  the  imperfec- 
tions in  the  Binet-Simon  measuring  scale  of  intelli- 
gence cannot  be  brushed  aside.  The  scale  certainly 
has  not  yet  been  made  maximally  accurate  or  scien- 
tifically precise — scientifically  precise  in  the  Aris- 
totelian sense  (we  may  demand  only  that  degree  of 
accuracy  in  a  given  subject  of  inquiry  which  the  sub- 
ject-matter itself  allows)  or  sufficiently  standardized. 
A  large  work  and  a  challenge  remain  for  the  students 
of  '  Intelligenzpriifung"  —  a    work   that   will   pay 


58  EXPERIMENTAL  STUDIES   OP  MENTAL  DEFECTIVES 

double  interest  on  a  large  investment  of  time  and 
labor,  for  the  public  schools,  juvenile  courts  and  in- 
stitutions for  defectives  stand  in  dire  need  of  a  sim- 
ple, objective,  practical  mental  measuring  rod  by 
which  to  determine  the  degree  of  mental  arrest,  de- 
fect or  acceleration  of  deviating  individuals,  and  by 
which  properly  to  classify  institutional  cases. 

In  the  light  of  the  defects  which  we  have  found  in 
the  scale,  what,  then,  shall  we  say  of  the  value  of  the 
B.-S.  system  of  classifying  defectives?  An  answer 
to  this  question  must  await  the  analysis  of  the  fol- 
lowing chapter. 


CHAPTER  III. 

THE  VABIATION  OF  MENTAL  AND  PHYSICAL  TRAITS  IN 
RELATION  TO  THE  AGE  CLASSIFICATION  OF  THE 
BINET-SIMON    SCALE. 

Paidologists  have  been  wont  to  accept  tlie  postu- 
late that  mental  traits  or  capacities  increase  in  effi- 
ciency or  multiply  in  number  with  increasing  age. 
The  validity  of  the  B.-S.  scale  itself  depends  on  the 
validity  of  this  assumption.  If  we  accept  the  as- 
sumption as  correct,  the  following  conclusions 
follow : 

First,  it  is  feasible  to  construct  a  graded  scale  of 
mental  performances  consisting  of  a  series  of  tests 
which  either  progressively  increase  in  difficulty 
from  year  to  year  (similar  tests  being  repeated  at 
various  levels)  or  measure  new  traits  developing  at 
various  higher  levels. 

Second,  it  should  be  possible  to  arrange  these  tests 
in  a  fairly  accurate  ascending  age  series,  so  that  we 
can  locate  the  mental  station  of  normal  and  ab- 
normal individuals  in  units  of  mental  age,  and  deter- 
mine how  any  mental  or  physical  characteristics 
vary  in  accordance  with  a  fixed  classificatory  or 
graded  scheme. 

Third,  by  plotting  age-curves  for  the  individual 
traits  tested  in  the  scale  (as  well  as  for  functions 
tested  independently  of  the  scale),  we  secure  a  means 

69 


60  EXPERIMENTAL  STUDIES    OF  MENTAL  DEFECTIVES 

of  trying  out  the  accuracy  of  the  scale  itself  and  of 
determining  more  fully  to  what  extent  these  traits 
vary  with  age  among  normal  and  abnormal  indi- 
viduals. 

In  this  chapter  I  shall  be  concerned  with  this  third 
conclusion,  because  the  imperfections  revealed  in  the 
1908  B.-S.  scale  by  the  data  considered  in  Chapter  II 
naturally  raise  the  question  whether  or  not  the  scale  is 
of  any  practical  value  in  the  mental  grading  or  diag- 
nosis of  normal  or  abnormal  subjects.  If  it  can  he 
shown  that  the  average  efficiexcy  in  the  various 
traits  tested  increases  with  growing  age  {annually  or 
biennially),  then  the  scale,  in  spite  of  its  imperfec- 
tions, and  provided  the  mean  variations  in  each  age 
are  not  too  large,  remains  a  valuable  means  of  deter- 
mining, in  comparable  terms,  the  classification  of 
DIFFERENT  HOMOGENEOUS  groups  of  pcrsons.  For  if 
the  individuals  were  very  poorly  classified,  we  should 
expect  to  find  obvious  irregularities  or  skews  in  the 
curve  of  efficiencies  for  each  trait,  and  extreme  mean 
variations.  Of  course,  the  relevancy  of  the  scale, 
even  if  it  be  imperfect,  for  determining  the  relative 
station  of  different  individuals  in  the  same  homoge- 
neous group,  needs  no  argument. 

The  discussion  of  the  scale  will  also  serve  to  bring 
to  view  various  facts  of  considerable  interest  re- 
specting the  mental  efficiencies  of  epileptics. 

In  order  satisfactorily  to  analyze  our  data  it  will 
be  necessary  to  examine  the  averages  for  the 
entire  population,  of  all  ages  and  both  sexes,  in  the 
various  tables,  and  the  corresponding  mean  vari- 
ations. The  former  will  be  examined  with  consider- 
able thoroughness,  the  latter  more  briefly.    Finally, 


VARIATION   OP   MENTAL  AND  PHYSICAL  TRAITS  61 

a  concluding  section  will  be  devoted  to  the  more 
general  conclusions  and  comparisons. 

It  is  unfortunate  that,  in  the  absence  of  the  origi- 
nal data,  it  will  be  necessary  to  limit  this  study  to 
four  B.-S.  tests,  and  to  tests  with  the  form-board, 
dynamometer  and  ataxiagraph. 

Explanation  of  Tests. 

In  the  color  test  (Table  X)  the  patients  (224  epi- 
leptics between  the  B.-S.  ages  III  and  XIII)  were 
uniformly,  with  few  exceptions,  instructed  to  name 
the  four  colors  as  rapidly  as  possible.  The  experi- 
menter pointed  to  each  color  in  succession  rapidly, 
so  that  the  results  would  represent  maximal  per- 
formances were  it  not  for  the  fact  that  the  green  used 
in  the  testing  of  about  one-half  of  the  patients  was 
poorly  saturated,  and  therefore  caused  hesitation  or 
failures.  Green,  even  at  its  best,  is  the  least  fre- 
quently named  of  these  colors,  among  normal  per- 
sons, as  appears  in  Bobertag's  B.-S.  testing  of  Ger- 
man children,  while  red  is  the  most  frequently  named. 
Blue  and  yellow  were  about  equally  difficult.  The 
following  was  found  by  Winch  to  be  the  order  of  the 
correct  application  of  color  names  among  children 
three  to  five  years  of  age:  black,  white,  red,  blue, 
green,  yellow,  violet  and  orange.  The  order  agrees 
with  Bobertag's,  except  that  green  is  placed  ahead 
of  yellow.  In  my  testing  of  epileptics  no  other  single 
color  caused  so  many  delays,  indecisions  or  failures 
as  green.  I  agree  fully  with  Bobertag  that  these 
colors,  in  order  to  serve  a  useful  purpose  in  the  scale, 
should  be  standardized. 

In  the  test  of  uttering  discrete  words  the  subjects 
were  always  told  to  utter  just  as  many  single  words 


62  EXPERIMENTAL  STUDIES   OP  MENTAL  DEFECTIVES 

as  possible  during  three  minutes  or  until  told  to  stop 
(Table  XV).  Those  who  were  slow  were  usually 
incited  to  greater  effort  by  verbal  suggestions.  Three 
or  four  examples,  illustrative  of  the  object  of  the 
test,  were  furnished  at  the  outset.  No  record  was 
included  which  consisted  merely  of  phrases  or  sen- 
tences or  which  consisted  of  any  considerable  num- 
ber of  these,  and  none  was  excluded  because  of  pecu- 
liarities in  the  word  lists  (such  as  uttering  many 
numbers — unless,  indeed,  all  the  words  were  num- 
bers— or  letters  of  the  alphabet,  or  names  of  months 
or  days). 

In  the  reading  test  (Tables  XI  and  XVU)  the  fol- 
lowing selection  was  used : 

Three  |  houses  |  on  [  fire. 

New  York,  |  September  5th.  |  A  fire  I  last  nit^ht  |  destroyed  |  ( three 
houses)  in  the  center  of  the  city.  | 

Seventeen  |  families  |  are  without  homes.  |  The  loss  is  more  than  | 
thirty  thousand  dollars.  | 

In  saving  |  a  child  |  who  was  asleep  in  bed,  |  one  of  the  firemen  | 
was  badly  |  burned  |  on  the  hands  and  arms.  | 

(The  units  are  indicated  by  the  line  divisions.  In  a  few  cases  half 
credits  were  given ;  e.  g.,  half  a  memory  for  "September,"  "on  the 
hands,"  "thirty  thousand.") 

The  subjects  were  merely  told  to  read  the  selec- 
tion, without  intimation  that  they  would  be  expected 
to  reproduce  it.  To  many  this  test  was  given  after 
some  of  the  speed  tests,  so  that  a  number  of  subjects 
undoubtedly  inferred  that  they  were  expected  to  read 
the  passage  as  rapidly  as  possible.  The  results  may 
therefore  be  a  trifle  better  than  the  general  average. 

In  the  form-board  (Table  XIII)  and  hand  dyna- 
mometer (Table  XIX)  tests  the  patients  were,  again, 
invariably  urged  to  do  their  best,  and  only  their  best 
records  are  averaged  in  the  tables.  Each  one  was 
given  three  trials  each  with  the  Vineland  pattern 


VARIATION  OP  MENTAL  AND  PHYSICAL  TRAITS  63 

form-board  and  the  Smedley  dynamometer,  but  the 
tests  were  repeated  during  second  or  third  sittings 
for  many  subjects,  so  that  frequently  the  figures 
utilized  are  the  best  single  records  in  from  six  to  nine 
trials.  It  may  be  said,  parenthetically,  that  the  best 
form-board  record  was  by  no  means  always  the  last 
one ;  on  the  contrary,  matiy  epileptics  lost  with  prac- 
tice or  familiarity. 

Uniformly,  the  form-board  was  placed  directly  in 
front  of  the  subject,  with  the  side  containing  the  star 
nearest.  The  subjects  saw  the  blocks  removed  from 
their  proper  places  by  the  experimenter.  The  blocks 
were  thrown  into  a  heap  on  the  table  along  the  far- 
ther side  of  the  board,  instead  of  along  either  end,  so 
that  they  should  be  equally  distant  from  the  two 
hands.  Either  hand  could  thus  be  used  with  the  same 
ease.    The  subjects  were  told  to  use  only  one  hand. 

The  same  uniformity  of  procedure  was  used  in  the 
dynamometer  test.  The  instrument,  properly  ad- 
justed to  the  size  of  the  hands,  was  placed  by  the 
experimenter,  dial  up,  in  the  subjects'  hands  so  that 
the  palms  always  faced  up.  Two  results  thereby  fol- 
low: (1)  the  subjects  were  able  to  see  the  movement 
of  the  registration  pointer;  and  (2)  the  thumb  sides 
of  the  two  hands,  which  probably  exert  a  greater 
pressure  than  the  little  finger  sides,  came  into  con- 
tact with  the  opposite  ends  of  the  stirrup  of  the  dyna- 
mometer. This  circumstance  may  be  of  some  impor- 
tance in  dynamometry  work,  as  indicated  by  a  series 
of  calibration  tests  of  the  instrument,  which  showed 
that  the  same  weight  on  the  two  sides  of  the  stirrup 
does  not  give  exactly  the  same  reading. 

The  weights  were  suspended  from  the  stirrup  by  an  iron  hook,  so 
made  as  to  move  freely  (without  friction  against  any  stationary  part) 


Objective 

Weight 

Result  of  Normal 

Lift. 

Kg. 

Right. 

Middle. 

Left. 

Rigl 

5.2 

4.7 

5.2 

4.7 

12.4 

10.3 

11.7 

10.0 

16. 

16.5 

14.1 

16.4 

14.3 

15. 

31.7 

28.2 

30.6 

27.4 

48.2 

45. 

45.7 

35.5 

60.3 

48.8 

58.2 

64  EXPERIMENTAL  STUDIES   OF  MENTAL  DEFECTIVES 

when  the  dynamometer  was  lifted  from  the  dial  end.  Thus  pressure 
was  exerted  on  the  stirrup  in  much  the  same  way  as  when  it  is 
squeezed  by  the  hand.  The  hook  was  suspended  from  one  of  three 
points  on  the  stirrup :  the  middle  and  either  end.  "Normal"  indicates 
that  the  weights  were  lifted  slowly  or  with  moderate  rapidity ;  "fast," 
rapidly  or  with  a  quick  jerk.  (The  weights  were  weighed  on  a  new 
pair  of  platform  scales,  so  that  the  weighing  is  probably  correct.) 

TABLE    IX. 

Calibration  Testa  of  the  Smedley  Dynamometer. 

Result  of  Fast  Lift. 
It.         Middle.         Left. 

19. 

24.7  16.1 

36. 

64.9 

The  figures  are  averages  of  from  three  to  twenty  trials. 

A  number  of  interesting  facts)  appear  from  a  study  of  these  figures. 
(1)  Pulls  on  the  right  and  left  side  of  the  stirrup  practically  always 
gave  a  different  reading,  usually  amounting  on  the  average  to  a  frac- 
tion of  a  kilo  (but  with  a  maximum  of  nearly  10  kg.).  In  most  in- 
stances the  right  side  of  the  stirrup  gave  the  larger  registration.  (2) 
The  middle  pull  in  all  cases  gave  the  highest  registration — presumably 
because  the  pulls  at  the  ends  occasion  friction  along  the  sides  of  the 
piston.  The  difference  between  the  middle  and  side  pulls  ranges  be- 
tween 1.4  and  3.2  kg.  (two  extremes  excepted) — a  difference  so  large 
as  seriously  to  threaten  to  vitiate  dynamometry  work.  Consequently 
it  is  of  the  utmost  importance  in  testing  with  the  Smedley  dynamom- 
eter that  the  subjects  exert  the  pressure  along  the  middle  of  the 
stirrup.  This  precaution  is  by  no  means  always  observed,  particu- 
lai'ly  not  when  readings  are  taken  while  the  handle  has  been  allowed 
to  slide  out  of  the  palm  on  the  side  opposite  the  thumb.  In  this  case 
the  pressure  is  exerted  at  the  end  of  the  stirrup,  with  a  consequent 
loss.  In  the  present  research  the  attempt  was  made  to  secure  middle 
pressure.  This  instrumental  defect  should  be  remedied.  (3)  If  we 
consider  the  middle  registrations,  it  appears  that  the  dynamometer 
in  use  was  not  true  to  scale,  except  for  one  or  two  weights.  The 
spring  was  slighty  too  stiff.  The  inaccuracy,  moreover,  seems  to  in- 
crease with  increasing  pressure,  as  shown  by  these  differences  for 
the  successive  weights  (beginning  with  12.4  kg.)  :  .7,  .1,  1.1,  2.5  and 
2.1  kg.  In  the  interest  of  scientific  precision,  dynamometers  must 
be  calibrated  as  accurately  as  possible  and  tested  objectively  from 
time  to  time.  (4)  The  testing  with  the  same  weights  sometimes 
differed  quite  considerably  on  different  days  (the  tests  were  made  be- 
tween December  and  March).  This  may  possibly  be  due  to  tempera- 
ture or  other  atmospheric  changes  which  may  alter  the  tension  of  the 
spring.     Is  this  a  remediable  defect?     (5)  The  differences  between  the 


VARIATION  OF  MENTAL  AND  PHYSICAL  TRAITS  65 

"normal"  and  fast  or  jerky  lifts  were  large,  amounting,  for  the  "mid- 
dle" readings,  to  7.3,  8.3,  5.4  and  6.7  kg.  for  the  different  standards. 
(The  friction  of  the  recording  pointer  was  kept  uniform  during  all  the 
tests.)  The  quick  lifts  or  jerks,  of  course,  invariably  gave  higher 
readings.  It  is  therefore  evident  that  dynamometry  results  may  be 
invalidated,  for  purposes  of  comparison,  by  differences  in  the  method 
of  squeezing.  I  have  found  that  most  subjects  tend  to  apply  a  steady, 
gradual  pressure.  But  there  are  many  who  give  a  rapid  or  violent 
squeeze.  Nearly  all  of  our  tabulated  results  were  obtained  by  the 
first  method.  The  readings,  however,  according  to  the  above  figures, 
appear  to  be  somewhat  too  low.  It  should  be  added  that  no  results 
are  tabulated  from  subjects  having  any  but  slight  injuries  in  one  or 
both  hands  or  arms. 

Finally,  in  the  ataxiagraphic  test  (Table  XXII) 
the  subjects  were  required  to  stand  under  a  small 
horizontal  sliding  board,  to  which  was  fastened  a 
tracing  record-sheet  of  white  paper.  The  board 
could  be  moved  vertically,  so  that  it  could  be  adjusted 
to  any  height  of  subject,  and  also  sagittally,  so  that 
the  ataxiagram  could  be  properly  placed  on  the  paper 
with  reference  to  the  antero-posterior  axis.  The 
ataxiagram  was  made  by  a  soft  marking  pencil,  which 
was  glued  to  a  band  of  spring  metal,  attached  to  a 
sort  of  ataxiagraphic  helmet,  which  consisted  of  two 
curved  encased  metal  bands  fitting  snugly  over  the 
cranium.  The  spring  kept  the  tracing  pencil  in  con- 
stant contact  with  the  paper,  except  when  the  subject 
dropped  the  head  or  swayed  too  much.  In  such  cases 
the  experimenter  was  sometimes  able  to  lower  the 
tracing  sheet,  or  if  not,  to  trace  the  record  by  hand 
with  sufficient  accuracy.  In  a  number  of  cases  in 
which  the  ataxiagram  extended  beyond  the  paper  it 
was  possible  for  the  experimenter  to  determine  the 
extent  of  the  departure.  At  the  beginning  the  spring 
was  depressed  by  the  experimenter's  hand  until  the 
record  board  had  been  properly  adjusted.  The  start- 
ing point  on  the  ataxiagram,  the  point  of  initial  con- 
tact, or  a  point  not  far  removed  from  this  point, 


66  EXPERIMENTAL  STUDIES   OP  MENTAL  DEFECTIVES 

would  have  afforded  four  measurements,  anterior, 
posterior,  to  right,  to  left ;  but  the  data  for  this  tabu- 
lation are  not  now  available,  so  that  in  Table  XXII 
only  the  gross  measurements  are  given  for  the  an- 
tero-posterior  and  lateral  sways,  irrespective  of  the 
point  of  initial  contact. 

Two  methods  were  employed  in  this  test.  In  the 
first,  the  subjects  were  instructed  to  stand  with  the 
feet  placed  to  form  a  V  (heels  together).  In  one 
series  the  eyes  were  closed,  and  in  the  other  the  open 
eyes  were  allowed  to  rove  at  will.  In  the  second 
method  they  were  instructed  to  stand  with  both  heels 
and  toes  close  together,  with  hands  hanging  along 
the  sides,  and  the  eyes,  when  open,  fixated  on  a  black 
disc  (about  1  inch  in  diameter)  attached  to  the  win- 
dow curtain  about  12  feet  away.  The  disc  was  ad- 
justed to  a  level  with  the  subject's  eyes.  In  neither 
method  were  the  subjects  instructed  to  try  to  stand 
still  or  rigidly,  but  simply  to  stand  naturally.  Noth- 
ing was  said  regarding  the  object  of  the  test.  With 
both  methods  about  half  the  subjects  were  first  tested 
with  the  eyes  closed  and  about  half  with  the  eyes 
open,  and  each  test  (given  in  close  succession)  lasted 
exactly  one  minute.  Table  XXII  contains  the  data 
secured  by  the  second  method  only.  A  search  of  the 
available  literature  indicated  that  there  has  been  no 
uniformly  observed  method  in  this  test,  but  the  sec- 
ond method  here  described  seems  to  the  author  to 
possess  most  merits.  The  limiting  of  the  tabulation 
to  the  second  method  explains,  in  part,  why  no  more 
records  are  used  in  the  study  (104  males  and  40 
females) :  the  station  of  many  patients  was  taken  by 
the  first  method.  Another  reason  is  that  ataxia- 
grams  secured  from  ataxic,  choreic,  paralytic,  para- 


VARIATION   OV  MENTAL  AND  PHYSICAL  TBAITS  67 

plegic  or  hemiplegic  subjects  were  excluded  from  the 
tabulation.  Accordingly,  the  ataxiagrams  used 
should  represent  the  body  sway  in  epilepsy  uncompli- 
cated by  special  permanent  motor  disturbances.  It 
should  be  added  that  a  number  of  patients,  particu- 
larly low-grade  ones,  either  did  not  fixate  the  disc  at 
all,  or  allowed  the  eyes  to  rove  more  or  less. 

Analysis  of  the  Averages. 

In  Tables  X,  XI  and  XIII  an  increase  of  efficiency 
or  capacity  with  increasing  B-S.  age  is  shown  by  a 
progressive  diminution  of  the  time  of  execution.  In 
the  corresponding  graphs  (II,  IV  and  VI)  this  is 
shown  by  a  drop  in  the  curves. 

The  Time  Needed  to  Name  the  Four  Colors — Red, 
Yellow,  Green  and  Blue. 

The  time  required  to  name  the  four  colors.  Table 
X,  does,  indeed,  decrease  with  increasing  B.-S.  age, 
but  the  decrease  from  year  to  year  is  not  very  regu- 
lar, as  seen  at  a  glance  in  Graph  II.  There  are 
numerous  exceptions  in  the  averages  for  the  general 
population,  the  children  and  the  adults.  The  excep- 
tions are  least  numerous  among  the  girls  and  women. 
The  differences,  however,  between  the  groups,  the 
imbeciles  and  morons,  for  all  patients,  4  seconds,  and 
especially  between  Age  III  and  Age  XIII,  about  7 
seconds,  are  quite  considerable.  The  difference  be- 
tween the  averages  of  Ages  VI  and  VII  and  of  the 
moron  group  is  much  greater  for  the  adults  than  for 
the  children  (3.7  sec.  compared  with  1.1);  for  the 
girls  than  for  the  boys  (.9  as  against  .2),  and  for  the 
men  than  for  the  women  (6.8  as  against  3.1).  The 
sex  differences  are  also  brought  out  by  the  general 


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VAEIATION   OF   MENTAL  AND   PHYSICAL  TRAITS  69 

averages  for  Ages  VI  to  XIII,  from  which  it  appears 
that  the  girls  are  superior  to  the  boys  (average  of 
4.9  sec.  compared  with  5.7) ;  the  women  to  the  men 
(5.2  compared  with  7.9) ;  and  the  children  to  the 
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(1)  Significant  sex  and  maturity  differences  (dif- 
ferences between  the  juvenile  and  adult  periods  of 
life)  are  brought  out  in  so  simple  a  test  as  the  speed 
of  naming  the  four  fundamental  colors.  Epileptic 
children  are  superior  to  adults,  and  girls  and  women 
to  boys  and  men.  That  normal  girls  excel  normal 
boys  in  the  knowledge  of  colors  has  been  shown  be- 
fore. Bobertag  recently  found  this  condition  to  ob- 
tain in  this  very  test.  Moreover,  it  is  stated  that 
color-blindness  is  more  prevalent  among  males  than 
females  (in  about  the  proportion  of  4%  to  .5%). 
There  is  a  bigger  difference  between  high  and  low 
grade  adults  than  between  high  and  low  grade 
children. 

(2)  This  trait  (the  speed  of  naming  the  colors) 
apparently  reaches  its  maturity  at  about  Age  IX. 

(3)  In  this  test  the  increase  with  each  increasing 
B.-S.  age  is  not  very  regular,  indicating  either  that 
the  subjects  are  not  very  closely  classified  or  that 
this  is  not  a  very  satisfactory  test  by  which  to  check 
the  accuracy  of  the  scale. 


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VARIATION   OF   MENTAL  AND  PHYSICAL  TRAITS  71 

The  Time  Required  to  Read  the  Passage  About  a 

Fire. 

On  the  other  hand,  the  time  required  to  read  the 
selection,  Table  XI,  decreased  appreciably  and  regu- 
larly (as  is  strikingly  apparent  in  Graph  IV),  with 
only  one  exception  among  the  girls,  and  two  each 
among  the  men  and  women.  The  reading  time 
ranges  from  129.2  sec,  Age  VII,  to  18.5  sec.  Age 
Xni,  a  difference  of  80.7  sec.  The  difference  be- 
tween the  averages  of  Ages  VI  and  VII  and  of  the 
moron  group  amounts  to  as  much  as  56.1  sec  for  the 
general  population,  111.7  for  the  boys,  50.8  for  the 
women,  and  30.1  for  the  men.  The  shortening  of  the 
time  from  each  age  from  IX  to  XIII  amounts,  re- 
spectively, to  24.6,  17.3,  18.1,  3.3.  and  4.7  sec— a 
series  of  progressive  improvements.  The  largest 
and  most  consistent  improvements  in  these  years  are 
made  by  the  boys  and  men  (ignoring  the  girls  and 
children,  where  the  data  are  incomplete),  as  seen  in 
Table  XII. 

TABLE   XII. 

Improvement  in  Reading  Capacity  with  each  B.-8.  Age.  (The  figtireg 
represent  the  gain  in  seconds  made  by  a  given  age  over  the  next 
preceding  age,  based  on  Table  XI.) 


Age. 

Boys. 

Girls. 

Children. 

Men. 

Women. 

Adults. 

IX 

49.6 

81.0 

77.5 

31.1 

.4 

14.0 

X 

33.1 

—  3.0 

26.3 

16.8 

4.6 

15.6 

XI 

35.7 

28.4 

8.0 

13.7 

14.6 

11.9 

XII 

11.8 

8.7 

—12.6 

1.7 

XIII 

7.5 

—  1.0 

12. 

4.0 

Ave.       27.5  35.5         37.2  13.8  3.8  9.4 

A  minus  sign  indicates  loss  of  efliciency. 

From  Table  XI  it  is  apparent  that,  in  respect  to 
reading  ability  as  gauged  by  time,  the  girls  are  dis- 


72  EXPERIMENTAL  STUDIES   OP  MENTAL  DEFECTIVES 

tinctly  superior  to  the  boys  (shorter  time  in  all  ages 
and  in  the  averages) ;  the  adults  to  the  children  (in 
all  ages  and  the  averages),  and  the  women  to  the  men 
(in  six  of  eight  ages  and  in  two  averages). 

We  may  accordingly  conclude  that  the  reading 
test  is  a  valuable  test  for  four  reasons : 

(1)  It  discloses  significant  sex  and  maturity  dif- 
ferences. Here  the  epileptic  females  surpass  the 
males  and  the  adults  the  children.  But  the  difference 
between  the  high  and  the  low  grade  groups  is  great- 
est for  the  boys. 

(2)  The  considerable  superiority  of  the  adults 
indicates  that  reading  is  an  adult  art,  and  that  it 
seems  to  be  worth  while  to  teach  reading  to  epileptics 
in  spite  of  their  tendency  toward  progressive  deteri- 
oration or  degeneration.  This  point,  however,  re- 
quires special  investigation. 

(3)  Apparently  there  is  a  large  age-difference  in 
reading  capacity,  particularly  from  VII  or  VIII  to 
XI.  The  very  considerable  gain  at  IX  seems  to  in- 
dicate that  there  is  a  pronounced  advance  in  reading 
ability  for  epileptics  at  this  age.  At  the  same  time 
it  is  seen  that  the  progressive  decrease  in  the  reading 
time  is  fairly  regular  from  VIII  to  XL 

(4)  A  reading  test  thus  supplies  a  valid  test  for 
differentiating  mental  capacity  and  for  checking  the 
accuracy  of  intellectual  measuring  scales — albeit  the 
test  is  more  pedagogical  than  psychological.  As 
judged  by  the  time  of  reading,  the  B.-S.  grouping 
appears  to  be  fairly  satisfactory. 

It  seems,  therefore,  unwise  to  eliminate  the  test 


VARIATION   OP   MENTAL  AND   PHYSICAL  TRAITS  73 

from  the  scale,  as  Binet  has  done  in  the  latest  (1911) 
revision.  So  important  was  the  reading  test  in  the 
original  B.-S.  scale  that  it  was  used  as  the  differential 
between  two  groups  of  defectives,  the  imbeciles  and 
the  morons — the  latter  of  whom  can  be  taught  to 
read,  while  the  former  cannot.  The  fact  that  the  test 
is  more  pedagogical  than  psychological,  and  that  it 
represents  the  results  of  training,  should  not  neces- 
sarily militate  against  its  use  for  psychological  diag- 
nosis. The  attempt  to  teach  children  to  read  will 
probably  have  been  made  in  the  case  of  the  majority 
of  subjects  who  will  ever  be  tested. 

The  Time  Required  to  Replace  the  Blocks  in  the 
Form-Board. 

In  this  test  (Table  XIII)  there  are  decided  and 
consistent  gains  (as  is  markedly  apparent  for  the 
general  population  in  Graph  VI),  with  three  excep- 
tions each  among  the  boys  and  girls,  and  two  each 
among  the  men  and  women.  The  difference  between 
Ages  I  and  XIII  amounts  to  211.6  sec,  and  between 
the  imbecile  and  moron  groups  84.4  sec.  The  differ- 
ence between  the  imbeciles  and  morons  is  consist- 
ently larger  for  the  girls  than  for  the  boys  (97.7  as 
against  78.7  sec.) ;  for  the  men  than  for  the  women 
(63.6  against  50.9),  and  for  the  children  than  for  the 
adults  (89.1  as  against  63).  On  the  other  hand,  the 
male  morons  are  five  times  as  efficient  as  the  male 
imbeciles ;  the  female  morons  three  times  as  efficient 
as  the  female  imbeciles;  the  boy  morons  5.5  times  as 
efficient  as  the  boy  imbeciles,  and  the  girl  morons  5.2 
times  as  efficient  as  the  girl  imbeciles.    The  corre- 


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VARIATION    OF   MENTAL  AND   PHYSICAL  TRAITS  75 

spending  figure  for  the  children  is  5.6,  for  the  adults 
4.2,  and  for  the  entire  population  5.4. 

A  further  study  of  the  sex-differences  shows  that 
there  is  no  constant  difference  between  the  male  and 
female  imbeciles,  each  being  superior  in  two  ages. 
Among  the  morons  the  males  are  superior  in  all  ex- 
cept Ages  IX  and  XI.  But,  in  the  general  average, 
the  females  excel  by  8.4  sec. 

Among  the  men  and  women  the  same  lack  of  con- 
stancy occurs,  each  being  superior  in  about  half  of 
the  ages,  but  the  men  excel  by  8.7  sec.  in  the  general 
average. 

Again,  the  girl  imbeciles  surpass  the  boy  imbeciles 
in  three  of  the  five  ages.  But  the  boys  excel  in  the 
general  average  by  24.7  sec,  and  the  boy  morons  are 
distinctly  superior  to  the  girl  morons,  excelling  in 
all  ages  but  Age  XI,  with  a  general  moron  average 
that  is  higher  by  20.9  sec. 

Finally,  the  same  lack  of  constancy  obtains  be- 
tween the  children  and  adult  groups,  the  former  be- 
ing superior  in  five  ages  and  the  latter  in  four.  But 
the  general  average  for  the  adults  is  distinctly  bet- 
ter (by  17.8  sec). 

The  gains  from  year  to  year,  beginning  with  Age 
V,  amount  to  26.6,  20.4,  31.1,  7.0,  4.6,  2.0,  2.8,  1.1  and 
.6  sec — a  progressively  diminishing  series  of  im- 
provements. A  comparison  of  the  improvements  in 
the  separate  columns  shows  that  the  gains,  as  well 
as  the  fluctuations  (losses),  are  considerable  in  Ages 
V,  VI  and  VII,  and  that,  from  VII  or  VIII  on,  the 
capacity  functioning  in  this  test  becomes  more  stable : 
the  gains  are  smaller,  and  the  losses  are  smaller  and 
less  frequent.  This  appears  from  an  examination  of 
Table  XIV. 


76  EXPERIMENTAL  STUDIES    OF   MENTAL  DEFECTIVES 

TABLE    XIV. 

Gains  or  Losses  made  in  the  Time  Required  to  Replace  the  Blocks  in 
the  Form-Board.  (The  figures  indicate  the  difference  in  seconds 
between  a  given  age  and  the  next  previous  age,  iased  on  Talle 
XIII.) 

B.-S. 

Age.  Boys.  Girls.  Children.    Men.  Women.  Adults.    Males.  Females. 

V  34.3  22.0  28.1  —64.5  137.2  48.5     —43.0  90.4 

VI  —62.2  6.4  —20.5  92.9  —15.9  36.8  50.8  —8.0 

VII  87.8  —4.0  33.7  37.5  15.5  28.0  53.7  7.3 

VIII  5.9  3.8  7.6  2.5  9.6  6.3  3.5  13.5 

IX  1.2  16.5  7.6  4.4  2.9  3.5  3.6  6.0 

X  3.3  5.6  4.0  2.7  —    .7  1.1  2.9  .8 

XI  —    .3  3.7  .9  4.1  2.5  3.6  2.5  3.0 

XII  2.3  —3.0  .7  1.7  1.1  1.3  1.9  1.9 

XIII  —  2.0  .5  1.5  .8  .0 

Ave.  7.8        6.4  7.7  9.1        17.0     14.4  8.3       14.2 

The  boys  show  a  greater  average  improvement  in 
these  ages  than  the  girls,  the  adults  than  the  children, 
the  women  than  the  men,  and  the  females  than  the 
males.  Much  of  the  superiority  of  the  adults  and 
females,  however,  is  due  to  the  abnormal  gain  in 
Age  V.  The  small  gains  between  XII  and  XIII  are 
due  either  to  the  relative  maturity  of  the  capacity 
at  XII,  to  the  fewness  of  the  subjects  or  to  the  failure 
of  the  B.-S.  scale  sufficiently  to  differentiate  capacity 
for  these  ages. 

From  the  above  survey  we  conclude: 
(1)  That  there  may  be  certain  sex-differences, 
and  differences  as  between  adults  and  children,  in 
the  capacity  functioning  in  this  test,  but  these  differ- 
ences do  not  appear  very  clearly  with  epileptics. 
Here  the  males  appear  to  surpass  the  females,  par- 
ticularly among  the  high-grade  subjects.  The  boy 
morons  are  distinctly  superior  to  any  other  group, 
and  the  adults  excel  the  children  both  in  the  general 
average  and  in  the  amount  of  improvement  from 
year  to  year. 


VARIATION   OF   MENTAL  AND  PHYSICAL  TRAITS  77 

(2)  The  capacity  improves  quite  regularly,  in 
progressively  diminishing  amounts,  with  each  in- 
creasing B.-S.  age.  The  irregularities  in  the  lower 
ages  are  probably  due  to  the  fewness  of  the  subjects. 

(3)  Accordingly,  this  is  a  fairly  good  test  for 
purposes  of  classification,  diagnosis  and  testing  the 
accuracy  of  intelligence  scales,  at  least  between  the 
Ages  of  VI  and  XII. 

(4)  Judged  by  the  time  required  to  replace  the 
blocks,  the  B.-S.  classification  of  the  patients  pos- 
sesses a  very  fair  degree  of  reliability. 

If  we  now  turn  to  the  tables  (XV,  XVII  and  XIX) 
in  which  increasing  capacity  is  shown  by  increments 
in  the  output  within  fixed  time-limits,  we  find  again 
evidences  of  improvement  with  each  growing  B.-S. 
age.  This  improvement  is  indicated  by  rising  curves 
in  the  graphs  (III,  V  and  VII). 

Number  of  Words  Uttered  in  Three  Minutes. 

The  number  of  words  uttered  increases  regularly 
(Table  XV),  with  one  exception  each  among  the  men, 
women,  girls  and  boys,  from  16  words  at  Age  VI  to 
65  at  Age  XIII,  a  difference  of  49  words.  There  is 
only  one  skew  in  the  graph  (III).  The  difference 
between  the  average  of  Ages  VI  and  VII  and  the 
moron  group  amoimts  to  21.2  words  for  the  general 
population,  25.9  for  the  boys,  23.2  for  the  girls,  24.2 
for  the  men,  17.5  for  the  women,  23.4  for  the  children, 
20.9  for  the  adults,  36.2  for  the  males,  and  18.2  for 
the  females.  The  difference  between  the  high  and 
low  grade  patients  is  thus  greatest  for  the  males 
(both  boys  and  men)  and  the  children.  The  differ- 
ences between  each  of  the  successive  ages  from  IX 
to  XIII  amount  to  the  following  for  the  entire  popu- 


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VARIATION   OP   MENTAL  AND   PHYSICAL  TRAITS  79 

lation :  11.9,  10.2,  7.7,  8.6  and  5.1.  The  correspond- 
ing figures  for  the  separate  groups  are  shown  in 
Table  XVI. 

TABLE    XVI. 

Gains  or  Losses  vnih  each  B.-S.  Age  in  the  Number  of  Words  uttered 
in  Three  Minutes.  (The  figures  indicate  the  difference  in  the  num- 
ber of  words  given  in  a  given  age  and  the  next  previous  age,  as 
computed  from  Table  XV.) 


Age. 

Boys. 

Girls. 

Children. 

Men. 

Women. 

Males. 

Females. 

Adult 

DC 

2.7 

17.2 

8.7 

15.4 

12.7 

10.8 

14.1 

13.8 

X 

10.7 

18.5 

13.2 

11.1 

5.9 

10.9 

9.0 

8.1 

XI 

9.2 

5.9 

10.2 

2.4 

9.0 

5.1 

12.3 

6.7 

XII 

13.0 

6.0 

15.3 

7.3 

3.0 

17.4 

7.3 

6.0 

XIII 

4.5 

8.8 

11.6 

—4.4 

1.0 

9.3 

Ave. 

8.0 

11.9 

11.8 

9. 

8.4 

7.9 

8.9 

8.7 

Here  the  gains  are  the  highest  for  the  girls  and 
children.  They  continue,  though  in  diminished  de- 
gree, to  Age  XIII.  This  indicates,  as  one  might  ex- 
pect in  a  test  of  this  sort,  that  the  rate  of  utterance 
increases  beyond  the  age  of  XIII,  so  that  a  free  asso- 
ciation test  might  be  found  valuable  at  higher  levels. 
(Possibly  a  controlled  association  test  would  be  still 
more  valuable  at  various  levels.)  In  the  rate  of  word 
utterance  the  girls  excel  the  boys  (better  in  five  of 
the  ages  and  in  the  three  averages) ;  the  men  the 
women  (better  in  seven  ages  and  in  two  averages) ; 
the  children  the  adults  (better  in  five  of  eight  ages 
and  in  three  averages),  and  the  males  the  females  (in 
six  of  eight  ages  and  in  two  averages). 

The  following  conclusions  follow : 
t^  (1)  There  are  certain  sex  and  maturity  differ- 
ences in  the  free  association  test,  although  the  sex- 
differences  do  not  appear  very  clearly  among  these 
epileptics.  (We  are  speaking  of  quantitative,  not 
qualitative  differences.)  The  girls  seem  to  surpass 
the  boys,  the  men  the  women,  and  the  children  the 


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VARIATION  OF  MENTAL  AND  PHYSICAL  TRAITS  81 

adults.  The  gains  with  advancing  years  apparently 
are  greatest  for  the  girls  and  children,  while  the  dif- 
ference between  the  high  and  the  low  grade  groups 
is  greatest  for  the  males  and  the  children. 

(2)  There  is  a  fairly  regular,  although  slightly 
diminishing,  increase  in  the  capacity  with  each  rising 
B.-S.  age. 

(3)  Accordingly,  the  test  is  of  value  for  mental 
classification  and  for  checking  the  accuracy  of  intel- 
ligence scales. 

(4)  The  B.-S.  scale  fares  fairly  well  under  the 
scrutiny  of  this  test. 

Facts  Reproduced  in  the  Reading  Test. 

The  number  of  facts  retained  in  the  reading  test 
likewise  increases  regularly  (Table  XVII,  Graph  V), 
with  one  exception  each  among  the  boys,  girls, 
women  and  children ;  two  among  the  men  and  adults, 
and  none  for  the  general  population.  The  increase 
ranges  from  2.1  at  Age  VII  to  7.4  at  XIII,  a  differ- 
ence of  3.1  memories.  The  gains  for  each  successive 
age  from  VIII  to  XIII  are,  for  the  entire  population : 
1.6,  1.1,  0.5,  1.2,  0.3  and  0.6.  The  figures  in  the  sep- 
arate columns  are  as  follows : 

TABLE    XVIII. 

Gains  or  Losset  with  each  B.-8.  Age  in  the  Number  of  Vnitt  Repro- 
duced in  the  Reading  Teat  {the  figures  indicate  the  difference  be^ 
tween  a  given  age  and  the  next  previous  age,  hasi-d  on  Table  XVII.) 
B.-S. 

vni 

IX 

X 

XI 

XII 

XIII 

Are.  1.8        .94        1.8        .96  .7        1.2        1.0        .75 


BoTi. 

Oirla. 

Children.  Men. 

Women. 

Adults. 

Males.  1 

|iVmal( 

2.4 

.4 

1.6         1.9 

1.1 

1.4 

2.0 

1.0 

.8 

1.9 

1.2         1.9 

1.0 

1.4 

1.5 

1.2 

3.3 

—  .3 

2.1     —1.0 

.3 

.3 

.8 

.1 

—1.4 

.4 

—  .7         2.6 

.9 

2.0 

1.0 

.8 

4.9 

2.3 

3.9     —  .8 

—  .7 

.9 

.8 

.1 

—1.8 

1.2 

1.8 

1.4 

.1 

1.3 

82  EXPERIMENTAL  STUDIES    OP  MENTAL  DEFECTIVES 

The  increase  in  retentiveness  thus  varies  consid- 
erably from  age  to  age  and  group  to  group.  The 
largest  average  improvements  from  VIII  to  XIII 
are  made  by  the  boys,  adults  and  the  males.  This 
coincides  with  the  highest  memory  efficiency,  as  de- 
termined by  the  number  of  units  retained :  the  boys 
surpass  the  girls  (in  five  of  six  ages  and  in  the  aver- 
ages) ;  the  children  the  adults  (only  in  two  of  five 
ages,  but  the  averages  are  higher) ;  the  men  the 
women  (in  four  of  seven  ages  and  in  the  averages), 
and  the  males  the  females  (in  six  of  seven  ages  and 
the  averages). 

These  facts  suggest  the  following  conclusions: 

(1)  The  ability  to  reproduce  prose  (read  by  the 
subject)  varies  with  the  sex  and  the  period  of  life. 
Here  the  males  and  the  adults  excel  in  the  average 
amount  of  improvement  from  year  to  year,  and  the 
males  and  the  children  in  the  absolute  number  of 
units  reproduced. 

(2)  There  is  a  diminishing,  though  not  entirely 
regular,  increase  with  each  increasing  B.-S.  age. 

(3)  The  irregularities  found  in  the  age  curve  in 
the  various  columns  are  due  either  to  the  fewness  of 
the  subjects,  to  the  peculiarities  of  the  groups  (epi- 
leptics), or  to  defectiveness  in  the  B.-S.  classifica- 
tion. In  general,  however,  the  results  speak  more 
strongly  for  the  validity  of  the  B.-S.  scale  than 
against  it. 

(4)  The  test,  in  any  case,  is  a  valuable  test  for 
purposes  of  diagnosis  or  classification.  Whether  it 
is  preferable  to  base  the  number  of  facts  reproduced 
on  the  logical  units,  following  B.-S.,  or  on  phrase  or 
thought  unities,  has  not  yet  been  determined.  The 
scoring  can  be  made  both  qualitative  and  quantita- 


VARIATION    OP   MENTAL   AND   PHYSICAL  TRAITS  83 

tive.  Possibly  the  best  plan  is  to  base  the  scores  on 
single-idea  unities,  and  scale  the  scores  according  to 
the  relative  significance  of  the  items  (a  combined 
qualitative  and  quantitative  measure). 

Manuometry. 

The  strength  of  grip  (Table  XIX)  likewise  in- 
creases with  the  degree  of  intelligence,  although  the 
gain  with  these  patients  is  by  no  means  always  regu- 
lar, as  is  most  easily  seen  by  referring  to  Graph  VII. 
For  the  right  hand  there  are  four  exceptions  each  for 
the  general  population,  boys  and  girls ;  three  each  for 
the  men  and  adults,  and  two  each  for  the  children  and 
women.  For  the  left  hand  there  are  four  exceptions 
among  the  women  and  girls,  three  among  the  men 
and  adults,  two  among  the  boys  and  entire  popula- 
tion, and  one  among  the  children.  Apparently  the 
gains  are  more  consistent  for  the  left  than  for  the 
right  hand,  and  for  the  children  than  for  the  adults. 
By  tabulating,  as  in  Table  XX,  the  amount  of  the 
gains  and  losses  in  each  age  from  V  to  XIII,  we  not 
only  see  more  readily  the  irregularity  of  the  increase 
from  age  to  age,  but  we  also  perceive  that  the  sums 
of  the  average  gains  for  the  boys,  girls,  men  and 
women,  after  the  losses  have  been  deducted,  are 
somewhat  larger  for  the  right  than  for  the  left  hand 
(8.4  as  against  5.5  kg.,  whence  the  more  intelligent, 
the  stronger  relatively  is  the  right  hand) ;  that  the 
children  gain  more  relatively  with  the  right  hand 
than  do  the  adults ;  that  the  boys  gain  relatively  more 
with  the  left,  but  the  girls  with  the  right  hand ;  that 
the  men  gain  more  than  the  women,  and  that  in  all 
cases  the  strength  of  both  hands  is  less  for  the  XIII- 
year-olds  than  for  the  Xll-year-olds. 


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YARIATION   OF   MENTAL  AND  PHYSICAL  TBAITS  85 


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86  EXPERIMENTAL   STUDIES    OF  MENTAL  DEFECTIVES 

It  would  be  important  to  know  how  far  these  pecu- 
liarities or  irregularities  are  due  to  the  small  number 
of  subjects  tested  in  certain  ages. 

The  difference  between  Ages  III  and  XIII  for  the 
entire  population  is  12.9  for  the  right  hand  and  15.3 
kg.  for  the  left  hand ;  the  corresponding  differences 
between  the  imbecile  and  moron  groups  are  11.6  and 
12.2.  That  the  gain  of  the  morons  over  the  imbeciles 
is  not  uniformly  greater  for  the  left  hand  is  seen 
from  the  following  tabulation : 

TABLE    XXI. 

The  Amounts  in  Kg.  hy  which  Morons  excel  Imhetiles  in  Strength  of 
Grip  (based  on  Table  XIX). 

Right  Hand.  Left  Hand. 

Boys  13.1  kg.               14.1 

Girls  10.6  7.9 

Children   13.6  13.2 

Men    9.3  11.2 

Women   8.0  5.5 

Adults   10.8  10.2 

The  gain  of  the  high-grade  over  the  low-grade 
patients  is  relatively  larger  for  the  boys  than  for  the 
girls,  and  for  the  children  than  for  the  adults. 

With  respect  to  the  comparative  strength  of  the 
right  and  the  left  hands,  the  evidence  is  conflicting. 
The  general  average  for  the  left  hand  is  .5  kg.  higher 
(index  of  right-handedness  =  1.01%).  It  is  higher 
for  the  boys  (index  =  1.03%)  and  women  (index  = 
1.02%),  and  lower  for  the  girls  (96%)  and  men 
(98%).  Among  the  morons  it  is  higher  for  the  boys 
(1.02%)  and  men  (1.01%),  and  lower  for  the  girls 
(92%)  and  women  (99%) ;  and  among  the  imbeciles 
higher  for  the  girls  (1.03%)  and  women  (1.10%), 
and  lower  for  the  boys  (99%)  and  men  (96%).  The 
index  is  about  the  same  in  the  two  groups.    The  aver- 


VARIATION   OF   MENTAL  AND  PHYSICAL  TRAITS  87 

ages  for  the  boys  are  higher  for  the  left  hand  in  five 
individual  ages,  lower  in  three,  and  equal  in  three: 
for  the  girls  they  are  higher  in  half  the  ages ;  for  the 
men,  higher  in  six  ages  and  lower  in  five;  for  the 
women,  higher  in  seven  and  lower  in  four;  for  the 
children,  higher  in  half  the  ages,  and  for  the  adults 
they  are  higher  in  six  ages  and  lower  in  four.  It  is 
apparent,  therefore,  that  the  left-hand  grip  is 
stronger  in  some  epileptics  and  the  right-hand  grip 
in  others,  with  the  odds  rather  in  favor  of  the  left 
hand.  It  has  been  claimed  that  degenerates  have  a 
stronger  left-hand  grip,  but  the  rule  is  by  no  means 
invariable,  at  least  so  far  as  epileptics  are  concerned. 
For  normals  the  right-hand  grip  has  been  found 
superior,  the  index  varying  from  81  to  96%.  This 
contrasts  with  our  index  for  the  entire  population, 
1,01%.  But  there  are  probably  exceptions  among 
normal  persons  also. 

If  the  djTiamometry  results  leave  us  in  doubt  re- 
garding some  points,  the  superior  strength  of  the 
epileptic  boys  and  men  is  unmistakable,  just  as 
among  normal  persons.  There  is  no  significant  ex- 
ception in  any  column.  The  superiority  of  the  boys, 
compared  with  the  girls,  amounts  to  8  kg.  for  the 
right  hand  and  9.7  for  the  left,  and  the  superiority  of 
the  men,  compared  with  the  women,  amounts  to  16 
and  14.9  kg.  for  the  two  hands,  respectively.  The 
difference  is  not  only  large,  but  the  male  superiority 
is  relatively  greater  among  the  men  than  among  the 
boys.  Among  normals,  likewise,  it  has  been  found 
that  the  divergence  grows  more  marked  from  the 
time  of  puberty. 

Likewise  the  difference  between  the  moron  males 
and  females  is  greater  than  between  the  imbecile 


88  EXPEEIMENTAL  STUDIES   OF  MENTAL  DEFECTIVES 

males  and  females,  as  indicated  by  these  figures :  the 
right  and  the  left-hand  grips  of  the  boy  imbeciles 
surpass  those  of  the  girl  imbeciles  by  6.2  and  5.6  kg. ; 
for  the  adults  the  corresponding  figures  are  15.0  and 
11.7.  But  the  grips  among  the  boy  morons  exceed 
those  of  the  girl  morons  by  8.9  and  11.8 ;  the  corre- 
sponding figures  for  the  adults  are  16.3  and  17.3  kg. 
Analogous  results,  I  believe,  obtain  among  young 
and  old  normal  children.  In  the  imbecile  group  the 
difference  is  greater  for  the  right  than  the  left  hand, 
while  the  reverse  is  the  case  among  the  morons.  The 
sex-difference  is  thus  less  in  the  young  and  the  intel- 
lectually inferior  than  in  the  more  mature  and  intel- 
lectually superior. 

Another  unmistakable  fact  is  the  superior  strength 
in  all  the  groups  of  the  adults  as  compared  with  the 
children.  In  the  general  averages  this  superiority 
amounts  to  7.5  and  7.7  kg.  for  the  right  and  left 
hands,  respectively;  in  the  moron  group  the  corre- 
sponding differences  are  5.1  and  5.4,  and  in  the  imbe- 
cile group  7.9  and  8.4  kg.  It  thus  appears  that  many 
epileptics  grow  physically  stronger  as  they  pass 
from  childhood  to  adulthood.  How  long  this  increase 
continues  among  normal  persons  has  not  been  deter- 
mined. 

Summarizing,  we  may  say : 

(1)  The  dynamometer  test  reveals  significant  sex 
and  maturity  differences,  and  differences  between  the 
right  and  left  hands.  The  males  are  stronger  than 
the  females,  whether  epileptic  or  normal ;  the  adults 
and  the  morons  among  epileptics  relatively  more  so 
than  the  children  and  the  imbeciles.  The  absolute 
strength  is  greater  for  the  adults  and  morons:  the 
younger  and  inferior  (lower  grade)  are  relatively 


VARIATION   OF   MENTAL  AND  PHYSICAL  TRAITS  89 

nearer  together  than  the  older  and  intellectually 
superior.  The  left-hand  grii3  is  stronger  with  some 
epileptics,  the  right  with  others;  but  altogether  the 
left  hand  is  apparently  slightly  stronger,  as  seen 
most  clearly  in  Graph  VII.  The  index,  1.01%,  is 
quite  different  from  the  normal  index,  from  91  to 
96%.  It  is  seen  that  the  epileptics  approximate  a 
condition  of  ambidextrality,  just  as  dull  and  feeble 
persons  do.  The  latter  have  *'two  left  hands" 
(Binet  and  Vaschide).  A  positive  correlation  has 
also  been  asserted  between  dextrality  and  intel- 
lectual ability  for  normal  children  (Smedley). 

(2)  There  is  an  increase  in  the  strength  of  grip 
with  increasing  B.-S.  ages,  but  the  increase  from  age 
to  age  is  not  entirely  regular.  This  indicates  either 
that  the  B.-S.  classification  is  not  entirely  correct,  or 
that  epileptics  do  not  follow  the  rule  obtaining 
among  normal  persons,  who  show  an  increase  with 
each  chronological  age  (Smedley),  or  that  the  irregu- 
larities may  be  due  to  the  fewness  of  the  patients  in 
some  ages.  The  gains  with  increasing  age  are 
greater  for  the  boys  than  for  the  girls,  for  the  chil- 
dren than  for  the  adults,  and  for  the  right  than  for 
the  left  hand  (although  the  difference  between  the 
low  grade  and  the  high  grade  subjects  appears  to  be 
greater  for  the  left  hand). 

(3)  Our  results  are  in  harmony  with  the  finding 
for  public  school  children,  that  the  most  intellectual 
are  the  strongest  (Carman,  Smedley,  Schuyten). 

(4)  Dynamometry  is  a  valuable  test  for  purposes 
of  diagnosis ;  its  value  for  purposes  of  mental  classi- 
fication and  for  testing  the  accuracy  of  intelligence 
scales  needs  to  be  determined  with  greater  accuracy 
with  normal  persons.    So  important  has  the  grip 


90  EXPERIMENTAL  STUDIES   OP  MENTAL  DEFECTIVES 

(hand  grasp)  of  an  individual  been  considered  that 
Barr  regards  it  as  more  indicative  of  capacity  than 
the  language  test :  hand  grasp  and  mental  grasp  go 
hand  in  hand  {Mental  Defectives,  1910,  p.  162).^ 

Ataxia  graphic  Sway. 

An  examination  of  Table  XXII  and  Graph  VIII 
shows  that  there  is  diminution  with  increasing  B.-S. 
age  of  the  bodily  sway,  both  lateral  and  antero-pos- 
terior,  but  that  this  diminution  is  by  no  means  regu- 
lar from  year  to  year.  Nevertheless,  if  we  examine 
the  averages  for  the  two  groups,  we  find  that  the 
sway  is  less  for  the  morons  than  for  the  imbeciles, 
with  one  exception  (females,  eyes  shut).  From  Table 
XXIII,  it  appears  that  the  group  difference  will  vary 
from  nearly  zero  to  almost  20  mm.,  that  the  differ- 
ence in  absolute  terms  is  larger  with  the  eyes  shut 
than  with  the  eyes  open  (one  exception),  that  the 
difference  for  antero-posterior  is  larger  than  for  the 
lateral  sway,  and  that  the  sex-difference  is  only  ap- 
parent with  the  eyes  fixated. 

TABLE    XXIII. 

Amounts  hy  which  the  Atawiagraphic  Sway  of  Imbeciles  exceeds  that 
of  Morons  {based  on  Table  XXII). 

r-Eyes  8hut->  .  ,— Eyes  fixated-^ 

A.-P.          Lat.  A.-P.          Lat. 

Mm.          Mm.  Mm.          Mm. 

Entire  population ^.     16.9        14.8  11.6          7.7 

Males 13.5         12.0  9.1        21.9 

Females 15.0        12.1  15.1    —    .8 

From  Table  XXIV,  which  gives  the  difference  be- 
tween the  absolute  sway  of  the  males  and  the  fe- 
males (a  positive  number  indicating  that  the  sway 

*In  a  later  contribution  the  dynamometry  data  will  be  tabulated  ac- 
cording to  chronological  ages  and  compared  with  normal  i)erformances. 


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92  EXPERIMENTAL  STUDIES    OF  MENTAL  DEFECTIVES 

is  larger  for  the  females ;  a  negative,  larger  for  the 
males),  it  appears  that,  while  the  difference  between 
the  sexes  is  not  very  considerable  in  most  cases,  the 
sway  is  larger  for  the  females  than  for  the  males. 

TABLE    XXIV. 
Sex  Differences  in  Ataxiagraphic  Sway  (based  on  TaWe  XXII). 

r-Eyea  8hut-^      r-Eyes  fixated--, 
A,-P.  Lat.         A.-P.  Lat. 

Mm.  Mm.         Mm.  Mm. 

Average  Of  all  ages —.5  4.9  2.2  2.6 

Morons —1.1  3.4      —1.7        12.5 

Explanations  of  signs  above. 

The  exceptions  are  the  antero-posterior  sway,  eyes 
shut,  both  groups;  and  eyes  fixated,  morons.  This 
seems  to  show  that  there  is  an  ataxiagraphic  sex- 
difference  in  epileptics  associated  with  the  lateral 
direction  (larger  relatively  to  the  antero-posterior 
sway  for  females  than  for  males).  The  exceptions 
can  be  gleaned  from  Table  XXII. 

To  summarize: 

(1)  Apparently  the  ataxiagraphic  sway  varies 
with  the  sex,  and  with  the  eyes  shut  and  open.  It  is 
slightly  larger  for  female  than  male  epileptics,  par- 
ticularly in  the  lateral  direction.  The  closing  of  the 
eyes  accentuates  the  sway  in  both  directions,  more 
for  the  low  than  for  the  high  grade  cases. 

(2)  The  antero-posterior  sway  is  usually  consid- 
erably larger  than  the  lateral,  as  is  strikingly  ap- 
parent in  the  Graph  VIII,  for  eyes  fixated. 

(3)  The  ataxiagrams  are  clearly  smaller  for  the 
moron  than  for  the  imbecile  group,  so  that  there  ap- 
pears to  be  a  difference  dependent  upon  the  degree 
of  intelligence.  But  the  dependence  is  not  very  pre- 
cise, as  the  diminution  of  the  sway  from  year  to  year 
is  not  very  regular. 

(4)  This  is  a  valuable  test  for  diagnosis  in  vari- 


VARIATION   OP   MENTAL   AND   PHYSICAL  TRAITS  93 

ous  conditions,  but  before  we  are  justified  in  using 
the  test  for  purposes  of  intellectual  classification  or 
for  checking  intelligence  scales  it  must  first  be  dem- 
onstrated that  the  bodily  sway  among  normal  per- 
sons varies  with  the  degree  of  intelligence.^ 

Analysis  of  the  Mean  Variations. 

As  a  measure  of  the  reliability  of  averages  or  the 
uniformity  between  the  separate  counts,  whether 
averages  or  single  determinations,  w^hich  make  up  a 
series  of  determinations,  we  may  use  the  mean  vari- 
ation (M.  v.).  The  reliability  of  the  central  tend- 
ency varies  inversely  with  the  size  of  the  relative 
M.  V.  If  the  M.  V.  is  large  in  relation  to  the  size  of 
the  average  (t.  e.,  if  the  relative  M.  V.,  or  coefficient 
of  variability,  is  large),  the  average  possesses  little 
reliability.  Likewise,  if  the  measurements  of  a  given 
trait  from  numbers  of  subjects  grouped  in  the  same 
mental  age  vary  considerably,  it  follows  that  the  test 
in  question  is  not  properly  placed  (not  well  attuned 
to  its  correct  age)  or  that  the  variation  is  normally  so 
large  for  the  given  trait  that  the  test  is  worthless  as 
a  norm  for  a  given  age.  It  is  clear  that,  in  the  very 
nature  of  the  case,  a  norm  is  normative  by  reason  of 
the  fact  that  it  indicates,  within  a  certain  range  of 
variability,  the  expected  performance  for  the  age  to 
which  it  is  assigned.  The  larger  the  variability,  the 
larger  is  the  uncertainty  of  the  norm ;  if  the  varia- 
bility is  as  large  as  the  average,  the  latter,  of  course, 
fails  utterly  to  represent  any  central  tendency.  At 
the  same  time,  one  must  recognize  that  mental  meas- 

*In  a  later  publication  the  ataxiagraphio  data  will  be  tabulated  ac- 
cording to  chronological  age,  and  compared  with  the  ataxiagrams  for 
normal  persons. 


94  EXPERIMENTAL  STUDIES   OP  MENTAL  DEFECTIVES 

urement  is  concerned  with  the  determination  of  tend- 
encies, not  of  absolute  constants,  and  that  a  certain 
degree  of  variability  of  performance  is  thus  per- 
fectly normal. 

The  M.  V.  of  a  series  of  determinations  is  not  very 
reliable  unless  the  series  contains  a  reasonable  num- 
ber of  observations.  Because  our  number  of  sub- 
jects is  small  in  some  of  the  ages,  it  will  be  advisable 
to  confine  the  analysis  to  the  larger  averages.  The 
details  may  be  left  to  the  reader  to  glean  from  the 
tables. 

The  coefficient  of  variability  in  the  time  required 
to  name  the  four  colors  amounted  to  28%  for  the  en- 
tire population,  26%  for  the  boys,  36%  for  the  girls, 
39%  for  the  women,  and  57%  for  the  men.  In  the 
amount  of  irregularity  the  boys  rank  highest  and  the 
men  lowest.  The  M.  V.  is  larger  for  the  imbeciles 
than  for  the  morons.  The  variation  is  considerable 
in  all  the  ages,  and  in  Age  VIII,  in  which  the  test  is 
placed,  it  is  even  larger  (37%)  than  for  the  general 
average. 

The  coefficient  of  variability  in  the  time  needed  to 
utter  sixty  words  amounted  to  25%  for  the  entire 
population,  18%  for  the  boys,  22%  for  the  women, 
28%  for  the  girls,  and  33%  for  the  men.  Here,  again, 
the  boys  are  the  most  regular  and  the  men  the  least. 
The  M.  V.  is  considerable  in  most  of  the  ages,  and 
in  Age  XI,  to  which  the  test  is  assigned,  it  amounts 
to  24%,  as  compared  with  13%  for  Age  XII,  the  age 
to  which  it  has  been  transferred  in  Binet's  latest 
revision,  and  the  age  in  which  it  is  satisfactorily 
passed  by  our  patients. 

The  coefficient  of  variability  in  reading  capacity, 
based  on  time,  amounted  to  28%  for  the  entire  popu- 


VARIATION   OP   MENTAL  AND  PHYSICAL  TRAITS  95 

lation  and  for  the  women,  26%  for  the  girls,  29%  for 
the  boys,  and  31%  for  the  men.  While  the  male  sex 
appears  to  be  the  most  variable,  the  differences  are 
not  very  material.  The  amount  of  the  variation  dif- 
fers greatly  in  the  different  columns,  but  it  is  usually 
considerable  in  each  age.  In  the  ages  in  which  the 
test  is  placed,  VIII  and  IX,  the  coefficients  are  consid- 
erably larger  than  any  of  the  above  figures,  namely, 
41  and  50%,  respectively.  Even  in  Ages  X,  XI  and 
XII,  the  coefficients  amount  to  60,  31  and  42%,  so  that 
while  the  average  reading  time  diminishes  with  age, 
the  variation  among  individuals  continues  large — a 
fact  of  common  observation. 

That  the  amount  of  irregularity  is  partly  due  to 
the  presence  of  a  few  very  slow  readings  is  indicated 
by  the  fact  that  the  medians  are  uniformly  and  con- 
siderably smaller  than  the  averages  in  Ages  IX,  X, 
XI  and  Xin. 

The  coefficient  of  variability  in  memory  capacity 
(memories  from  reading  test)  is  25%  for  the  entire 
population,  15%  for  the  boys,  24%  for  the  girls,  and 
30%  for  the  men  and  women.  This  points  to  a  greater 
regularity,  or  homogeneity,  of  memory-capacity 
among  the  boys  and  a  less  regularity  among  the 
adults.  In  this  respect  the  epileptic  adults  are  obvi- 
ously much  like  the  senile  adults  among  normal  per- 
sons. We  have  already  seen  that  memory  capacity 
among  the  children,  as  measured  by  the  number  of 
units  retained,  excels  that  of  the  adults.  The  size  of 
the  M.  V.'s  varies  a  great  deal  in  the  various  ages 
and  columns.  The  coefficient  is  27%  in  Age  VIII,  in 
which  the  average  number  of  memories  is  3.7,  instead 
of  2  as  required  by  B.-S.,  and  27%  in  Age  IX,  in 
which  there  are  4.8  memories  instead  of  six  as  re- 


96  EXPERIMENTAL  STUDIES  OF  MENTAL  DEFECTIVES 

quired  by  the  scale.  This  indicates  (1)  that  the  dif- 
ference in  reproductive  capacity  between  VIII  and 
IX  is  not  so  large  as  indicated  in  the  scale,  at  least 
for  epileptics,  and  (2)  that  the  variation  for  these 
ages  is  even  larger  than  for  the  general  average.  On 
the  other  hand,  the  coefficients  of  variability  in  Ages 
XI  and  XII  are  only  17  and  19%,  respectively. 

The  variability  in  the  test  of  motor  performance — 
the  form-hoard  —  amounted  to  24%  for  the  entire 
population,  25%  for  the  women,  27%  for  the  boys, 
39%  for  the  men,  and  47%  for  the  girls.  Here  the 
greater  regularity  in  the  boy  and  woman  groups  is 
manifest.  The  same  truth  appears  if  we  confine  the 
comparison  to  the  morons :  boys,  16% ;  women,  16% ; 
men,  17%,  and  girls,  21%.  The  differences  are  slight, 
however.  It  is  noticeable  that  the  absolute  M.  V.  is 
considerably  smaller  (at  least  in  two  cases)  for  the 
morons  than  for  the  imbeciles,  and  that  the  absolute 
M.  V.  decreases  markedly  with  age.  The  exceptions 
are  probably  due  to  the  fewness  of  the  subjects.  The 
variability  is  14%  for  Age  IX,  18%  for  Age  X,  10% 
for  Age  XI,  and  7%  for  Age  XII.  If  we  assume  that 
the  regularity  of  performance  of  a  given  activity 
increases  with  age,  it  appears  that  the  patients  are 
fairly  well  classified. 

The  coefficients  of  variability  for  the  right  and  left 
hand  grips  are  shown  in  Table  XXV. 

TABLE    XXV. 

Coefficients  of  Variability  in  Hand  Dynamometry. 

Right.  Left. 

Entire  population 20%  20% 

Boys  24  24 

Girls 25  23 

Men 13  16 

Women 16  17 


VARIATION   OP   MENTAL  AND  PHYSICAL  TRAITS  97 

It  appears  that  the  irregularity  is  about  the  same 
for  the  right  and  left  hands,  for  the  girls  and  boys, 
for  the  men  and  women,  and  considerably  less  for  the 
adults  than  for  the  children.  The  coefficient  is  con- 
siderably less  for  the  morons  than  for  the  imbeciles, 
the  percentages  for  the  right  hand  being,  respec- 
tively, 16  and  25,  and  for  the  left  hand  14  and  26. 
(Among  normals  the  variability  has  been  found 
greater  in  early  adolescence  than  at  any  other  time.) 

The  relative  M.  V.  's  for  the  body  sway  are  shown 
in  Table  XXVI. 

TABLE    XXVI. 

Coefllcienia  of  Variability  in  Ataxiagraphic  Sway. 

r-Eyes  shut-^  ^Eyes  fixated-^ 

A.-P.            L.  A.-P.             L. 

Entire  population 24            29  24            34 

Males 27            29  23            28 

Females 21           30  33           34 

It  is  seen  that,  without  exception,  there  is  among 
these  patients  less  relative  variation  in  the  antero- 
posterior than  in  the  lateral  sway ;  that  the  variation 
is  not  materially  different,  whether  the  eyes  are 
closed  or  fixated,  and  that  the  differences  between 
the  males  and  the  females  do  not  seem  to  follow  any 
rule. 

General  Conclusions  and  Comparisons. 

1.  In  most  of  the  above  tests  there  are  maturity 
differences,  that  is,  differences  between  the  period 
of  childhood  and  adulthood.  The  epileptic  children 
excel  in  the  color  test  (better  average  and  lower  M. 
v.),  the  60- word  test  (better  average  and  better 
gains),  and  the  memory  test  (higher  average  and 
lower  M.  V.) ;  and  the  adults  excel  in  the  reading 
test  (better  average),  the  form-board  test  (better 


98  EXPERIMENTAL  STUDIES   OF  MENTAL  DEFECTIVES 

average),  and  the  djmamometer  test  (better  average 
and  lower  M.  V.).  Accordingly,  an  adult  who  grades, 
say,  X  years  mentally  is  not  the  same  intellectually 
as  a  child  with  a  X-year  mind.  The  results,  however, 
seem  to  show  that  the  differences  are  not  so  large 
but  that  a  common  scale  can  be  legitimately  used  for 
both  children  and  adults — unless,  indeed,  the  differ- 
ences are  larger  among  normal  than  abnormal 
persons. 

Whether  the  adults  attain  a  higher  intellectual  sta- 
tion cannot  be  determined  reliably  from  the  data  in 
this  chapter,  but  must  be  ascertained  from  the  table 
of  distribution  in  Chapter  I.  In  this  table  it  appears 
clearly  that  the  adults  reach  a  higher  status :  there 
are  appreciably  more  child  than  adult  idiots  (3.7% 
more)  and  imbeciles  (14.3%),  but  appreciably  less 
child  morons  (11.8%)  and  normals,  retardates  or  de- 
viates (5.3%). 

The  inference  from  the  mere  curve  of  distribution, 
however,  involves  a  certain  source  of  error,  because 
there  are  nine  children  chronologically  less  than  thir- 
teen years  of  age  who  do  not  grade  as  feeble-minded 
by  the  B.-S.  scale  (that  is,  they  are  retarded  less  than 
three  years).  These  children,  therefore,  belong  to 
the  group  of  normals  or  deviates,  but  could  not  be  so 
classified  because  they  failed  to  satisfy  the  thirteen- 
year  standard.  But  it  is  probable  that  if  due  allow- 
ance is  made  for  this  error,  the  conclusion  will  still 
stand  that  the  adults  are  intellectually  superior  to 
the  children.  It  would  thus  appear  that  the  average 
epileptic,  in  spite  of  the  dementing  tendency  of  the 
disease,  makes  intellectual  progress  from  childhood 
to  adulthood — ^unless,  perchance,  the  onset  of  the  at- 
tacks occurred  late  in  life  or  unless  the  attacks  were 


VARIATION   OP   MENTAL  AND  PHYSICAL  TRAITS  99 

more  than  ordinarily  light  in  the  case  of  this  group 
of  adults,  both  of  which  suppositions  are  improbable. 
From  this  fact  we  may  conclude  that  institutions  for 
epileptics  should  be  made  genuine  training  schools, 
not  mere  asylums. 

2.  There  are  likewise  sex  differences  in  most  of 
these  traits.  The  females  excel  in  the  color  test  (in 
average  speed,  although  the  M.  V.  is  less  for  the 
boys),  the  reading  test  (average  and  M.  V.),  and  the 
60-word  test  (average,  and  gains  for  girls;  but  the 
men  also  have  a  high  average),  and  the  males  excel 
in  the  form-board  test  (particularly  in  the  average 
for  the  high-grade  patients,  and  in  the  average  and 
M.  V.  for  the  boy  morons ;  but  the  women  also  have 
a  low  M.  v.),  the  memory  test  (average,  and  M.  V. 
for  boys),  the  dynamometer  test  (average,  and  also 
gains  for  boys),  and  the  ataxiagraph  test  (average 
extent  of  sway).  It  is  seen  that  the  epileptic  males 
excel  in  more  tests  than  the  epileptic  women,  and 
that  the  best  single  group  is  that  of  the  moron  boys. 

These  results  are  confirmed  by  three  other  facts. 
First,  by  the  table  of  distribution  (Chapter  I),  which 
contains  a  larger  percentage  of  high-grade  males 
than  females.  Although  there  are  slightly  more 
male  than  female  idiots  (.7%  more),  the  male  imbe- 
ciles are  fewer  (by  7%),  while  the  male  morons  (by 
4.8%)  and  male  retardates  (1.4%)  are  more  numer- 
ous. Likewise  if  we  consider  the  separate  columns, 
there  are  less  men  than  women  idiots  (by  2.1%)  and 
imbeciles  (by  2.4%),  but  more  men  morons  (by  3.1%) 
and  retardates  (by  1.3%);  and  there  are  more  boy 
than  girl  idiots  (by  5.7%),  but  decidedly  less  boy  im- 


100       EXPERIMENTAL  STUDIES   OF  MENTAL  DEFECTIVES 

beciles  (by  20.8%)  and  decidedly  more  boy  morons 
(11.5%)  and  retardates  (3%).  The  obvious  superi- 
ority of  the  boys  is  confirmed  by  the  above  figures, 
although  a  relatively  large  percentage  of  the  idiots 
are  boys. 

A  second  means  of  corroboration  is  to  determine 
the  relative  station  of  the  boys  and  girls  by  calculat- 
ing the  number  of  years  of  retardation  for  each  child, 
that  is,  the  number  of  years  between  the  child's 
chronological  age  and  his  B.-S.  age.  This  could  not 
very  well  be  calculated  for  the  adults,  partly  because 
the  B.-S.  scale  does  not  extend  beyond  Age  XIII  (we 
have  no  other  satisfactory  tests  for  the  higher  ages 
that  have  yet  been  standardized),  and  partly  because 
the  attempt  would  involve  a  certain  absurdity.  Let 
us  assume  that  two  adults,  respectively  30  and  40 
years  old,  just  grade  XX  years  by  a  serial  intelli- 
gence scale.  We  should  not  thereby  be  able  to  say 
that  the  30-year-old  is  retarded  10  years  intellec- 
tually in  the  same  sense  in  which  a  13-year-old  grad- 
ing III  years  is  retarded  10  years,  since  the  increase 
in  intellectual  capacity  from  20  to  30  would  very 
probably  not  amount  to  10  years.  It  would  be  less 
than  the  difference  between  3  and  13.  Nor,  again, 
should  we  be  able  to  say  that  our  40-year-old  was 
retarded  twice  as  much  as  our  30-year-old,  for  ordi- 
narily for  the  average  person  there  is  probably  little 
increase  in  intellectual  strength  from  30  to  40  (there 
would,  of  course,  be  a  great  increase  in  erudition  on 
the  part  of  the  studious).  Hence,  our  40-year-old 
would  be  retarded  only  slightly  more  than  our  30- 
year-old. 


VARIATION   OP   MENTAL  AND  PHYSICAL  TBAITS  101 

Furthermore,  in  restricting  the  following  tabula- 
tion to  the  children,  it  is  well  to  point  out  certain  pos- 
sible errors.  The  amount  of  retardation  is  probably 
somewhat  exaggerated  in  the  case  of  those  who  pass 
the  tests  of  the  higher  ages,  as  the  norms  are  prob- 
ably too  difficult.  Nor,  following  the  above  reason- 
ing, does  a  unit  of  retardation  mean  exactly  the  same 
thing  throughout  the  scale.  The  difference  between, 
say.  Ages  II  and  III  is  larger  than  between  Ages  XII 
and  XIII.  A  20-year-old  person  who  passes  only 
Age  XII,  and  a  12-year-old  child  who  passes  Age  IV, 
would  both  be  rated  as  eight  years  retarded,  but  the 
eight  years  from  4  to  12  almost  certainly  represent 
a  larger  difference  than  the  eight  years  from  12  to 
20.  Moreover,  the  retardation  is  probably  exagger- 
ated for  the  few  who  pass  Age  XIII,  because  these 
few  might  have  gone  higher,  but  there  was  no  means 
of  determining  this  by  the  scale. 

In  Table  XXVII  the  children  are  arranged  in  their 
chronological  (actual)  ages  from  5  to  20,  and  the 
average  amount  of  retardation  is  given  in  years  for 
the  patients  of  the  same  chronological  ages.  In 
Table  XXVIII  the  amount  of  retardation  is  averaged 
for  the  children  in  each  B.-S.  age.  The  grouping  in 
Table  XXVII  is  based  on  chronological  age,  and  in 
Table  XXVIH  on  B.-S.  ages. 

Here  we  see  that  the  boys  are  retarded  less  than 
the  girls:  in  Table  XXVII  by  0.8  of  a  year  for  the 
general  average  and  by  0.9  for  the  average  of  ages 
14  to  20  (with  only  two  exceptions  in  the  individual 
ages) ;  and  in  Table  XXVIII  by  one  year  for  the  gen- 
eral average  (with  three  exceptions  in  the  individual 


102       EXPEEIMENTAL  STUDIES   OF  MENTAL  DEFECTIVES 


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VARIATION   OP   MENTAL   AND   PHYSICAL  TRAITS  103 

ages).  The  superiority  of  the  boys,  whichever 
method  of  tabulation  is  considered,  thus  amounts,  in 
round  terms,  to  one  year.^ 

Finally,  if  we  average  the  M.  V.'s  in  all  tests 
(ataxiagraphic  excepted),  we  get  the  following  re- 
sults : 

Boys.       Girls.    Children.     Men.      Women.    Adults.       Males.    Females. 
23.1        30.9        27.0        34.0        26.7        30.3        28.5       28.8% 


There  is  no  difference  between  the  males  and  fe- 
males, although  the  men  are  inferior  and  the  boys 
distinctly  superior. 

Altogether  we  may  say,  then,  with  confidence,  that 
the  males,  and  particularly  the  boys,  in  this  group  of 
epileptics,  are  superior  to  the  females  —  a  fact  of 
common  observation  at  the  institution.  Further 
study  would  determine  whether  this  conclusion  is 
valid  for  epileptics  generally.  The  conclusion  is  ob- 
viously of  interest,  because,  so  far  as  concerns  the 
children,  one  would  expect  the  girls  to  surpass  the 

'Attention  may  be  directed  incidentally  to  a  number  of  other  facts 
which  appear  in  the  above  tables.  Thus  the  amount  of  retardation  in 
general  becomes  greater  as  the  child  grows  older,  which  is  evident 
from  the  fact  that  the  figures  grow  larger  in  the  higher  chronological 
ages  in  Table  XXVI I.  This  indicates  a  progressive  loss  of  intelli- 
gence with  increasing  age,  relative  to  the  normal  improvement,  quite 
analogous  to  the  progressive  loss  in  manuometry  exhibited  by  juvenile 
delinquents — unless,  forsooth,  this  loss  can  be  accounted  for  by  the 
considerations  advanced  above.  It  seems  natural  that  the  normal  child 
should  outstrip  the  defective  more  and  more,  so  that  the  gap  between 
them  becomes  progressively  larger. 

On  the  other  hand,  the  loss  with  increasing  B.-S.  ages  becomes  less 
and  less,  the  average  for  Ages  I  to  VII  (idiots  and  imbeciles)  being 
10.1  and  for  Ages  VIII  to  XIII  (morons  and  retardates),  5.  The  pro- 
gressive loss  here  is,  no  doubt,  due  to  the  fact  that  few  children  at  the 
institution  were  under  seven  years  of  age. 

The  feeble-minded  status  of  the  group  is  emphasized  by  the  fact 
that  the  average  amount  of  retardation  is  over  7  years.  Yet  there 
were  4  girls  and  5  boys  who  were  merely  backward  (retarded  lew 
than  three  years). 


104       EXPERIMENTAL  STUDIES   OF  MENTAL  DEFECTIVES 

boys,  since  they  mature  earlier,  and  because  it  does 
not  square  with  public-school  statistics  of  retarda- 
tion, promotion,  elimination  and  repetition.  A  study 
of  fifteen  city  school  systems  showed  that  there  were 
more  retardates  and  repeaters  among  the  boys  than 
among  the  girls  (13%  more  of  each),  and  a  larger 
percentage  of  elimination  (17%)  and  non-promotion 
(Ayres).  Either  these  findings  do  not  apply  to  epi- 
leptic children,  or  otherwise  our  group  has  been  spe- 
cially selected  in  some  way.  Apparently  the  disease 
(epilepsy)  plays  greater  intellectual  havoc  with  girls 
than  with  boys. 

On  the  other  hand,  our  findings  agree  with  the  gen- 
eralization that  there  is  a  larger  percentage  of  males 
at  both  extremes  of  the  human  scale — ^more  very  low- 
grade  men  (idiots)  than  low-grade  women,  and  more 
very  high-grade  men  (geniuses)  than  high-grade 
women.  The  Germans,  it  is  said,  have  a  name  for 
boy  geniuses,  but  not  for  girl  geniuses. 

Having  these  sex-differences  in  mind,  a  question  of 
moment  confronts  us:  Can  we  measure  the  intelli- 
gence of  hoys  and  girls  accurately  by  the  same  scalef 
It  would  be  unwise  to  attempt  to  answer  this  ques- 
tion on  the  basis  of  our  results  with  epileptics.  It  is 
enough  to  say  that  our  results  emphasize  the  neces- 
sity of  a  thorough  experimental  study  of  the  ques- 
tion. 

3.  The  results  indicate  that  the  B.-8.  scale  is 
rather  more  satisfactory  than  appeared  from  the 
facts  adduced  in  Chapter  II.  While  it  does  not  scale 
different  grades  of  intelligence  with  the  degree  of 
accuracy  which  would  be  desired,  it  does  enable  us  to 
grade  and  classify  defective  individuals  far  more 
rapidly  and  satisfactorily  than  would  be  possible 


VARIATION   OP  MENTAL  AND  PHYSICAL  TRAITS  105 

hy  the  ordinary  methods  of  observation.  The  facts 
which  perhaps  tell  more  strongly  against  than  for 
the  accuracy  of  the  scale  are  the  averages  in  the 
color,  dynamometry  and  ataxiagraphic  tests,  and  the 
coefficients  of  variability.  The  latter  range  from 
15%  to  57%,  and  average  almost  30%.  Mental 
measurements,  of  course,  are  always  variables,  but 
the  variations  in  our  results  seem  to  be  rather  too 
large.  In  many  psychological  measurements  a  varia- 
tion of  from  10  to  15%  is  considered  large.  Perhaps 
we  may  fix  25%  as  the  maximal  permissible  coefficient 
of  variability.  But  we  need  to  determine  by  experi- 
mental means  what  should  constitute  a  normal  or 
maximal  coefficient  of  variability  for  normal  age- 
groups  (normal  persons).  At  the  present  time  we 
are  unable  to  assign  any  definite  value  to  the  age 
norm  of  variation  (M.  V.  norm).*  No  one,  however, 
need  be  deterred  from  using  the  scale  before  this 
work  has  been  done.  Whatever  its  imperfections,  it 
affords  a  practical,  easily  administered,  objective, 
systematic  method  of  grading  defective  children  and 
adults,  which,  while  not  as  yet  maximally  accurate, 
approximately  locates  the  mental  station  of  the  indi- 
vidual.   At  the  same  time  we  must  not  blind  our- 

'Courtis  tested  23  eighth-grade  pupils,  the  survivals  of  eight  years 
of  "passing"  on  a  70%  basis  (and  therefore  presumably  closely  graded), 
and  found  the  relative  M.  V.'s  to  amount  to  18%  in  an  addition  speed 
test,  "3%  in  age,  7%  in  handwriting,  •  •  •  15^  in  formal  Eng- 
lish grammar,  26%  in  height,  30%  in  memory  of  important  dates  and 
men,  00%  in  ability  to  reproduce  after  24  hours  the  main  points  of  a 
historical  passage  read  once  in  class"  (S.  A.  Ck>urtis,  Measurement  of 
Growth  and  Efficiency  in  Arithmetic,  The  Elementary  School  Teacher, 
II :  1911,  p.  533).  We  shall  be  in  no  position  to  pass  on  the  efficiency 
of  the  grading  in  graded  schools  until  we  have  gradc-norma  of  variabil- 
ity similar  to  the  age-norm$  of  which  we  have  spoken  above.  In  a 
serial  investigation  during  the  past  year  of  various  mental  traits,  I 
found  surprisingly  large  M.V's,  both  in  respect  to  the  age  and  grade 
standards. 


106        EXPERIMENTAL  STUDIES    OP   MENTAL  DEFECTIVES 

selves  to  the  necessity  of  revising  and  improving  the 
scale. 

4.  The  data  presented  here  will  help  us  to  a  bet- 
ter understanding,  not  only  of  epileptic  and  other 
types  of  abnormal  minds,  but  of  normal  persons  as 
well,  as  soon  as  similar  data  are  obtained  from  other 
surveys.  Here  we  can  take  space  for  three  brief 
comparisons  only. 

According  to  B.-S.,  the  time  required  to  read  the 
fifty-three  words  about  a  fire  was  as  follows  for  the 
ages  indicated :  Age  VIII,  45  sec. ;  IX,  40  sec. ;  X,  30 
sec;  and  XI,  25  sec.  Comparison  with  the  corre- 
sponding ages  in  Table  XI  shows  that  the  epileptics 
of  VIII,  IX  and  X  required  considerably  more  time 
(the  times  were  86.5,  61.9  and  44.6  sec,  respectively), 
while  the  Xl-year-old  epileptics  required  about  the 
same  amount  of  time — indeed,  if  we  consider  the 
medians,  the  time  was  actually  shorter  for  the  X-  and 
Xl-year-old  epileptics  than  for  the  normals.  Here 
is  probably  a  specific  retardation  effect  incident  to 
the  disease  (epilepsy).  The  epileptic  children  ac- 
quire the  reading  art  more  slowly  than  do  normal 
children ;  in  fact,  more  slowly  than  the  above  figures 
indicate,  because  many  of  those  who  graded  X  and 
XI  were  chronologically  from  12  or  13  to  18  or  20 
years  old. 

The  following  were  the  seconds  consumed  by  the 
feeble-minded  patients  at  Vineland  in  replacing  the 
blocks  in  the  form-hoard  for  each  B.-S.  age  (accord- 
ing to  figures  supplied  directly  by  Goddard) : 


II 

III 

IV 

V 

VI 

VII 

VIII 

IX 

X 

XI 

XII 

150 

90 

70 

40 

35 

29 

20 

19 

19 

17 

15 

It  is  seen  from  Table  XIII  that  the  feeble-minded 
reacted  more  rapidly  than  the  epileptic  in  all  ages  up 


VAEIATION   OP   MENTAL   AND   PHYSICAL  TRAITS  107 

to  and  including  IX,  in  some  ages  very  considerably 
faster,  but  that  from  Ages  X  to  XII  the  epileptics 
slightly  excelled.  The  higher-grade  epileptics  thus 
react  pretty  much  like  the  higher-grade  feeble- 
minded in  the  corresponding  ages.  It  should  be 
stated  that  the  epileptics  were  tested  when  they  were 
in  their  normal  condition,  and  not  in  a  state  of 
stupor.  In  the  latter  condition  the  reactions  would 
be  markedly  lengthened  or  would  cease  entirely. 

Finally,  comparison  for  memory  of  digits  may  be 
made  with  Jacob's  norms  for  London  school  children. 
He  pronounced  series  of  digits  to  about  thirty  pupils 
in  each  age  from  8  to  19.  The  pupils  wrote  what  they 
retained.  The  following  averages  are  based  on  the 
highest  number  reproduced  '^ 

Age.       8       9     10     11     12     13     14     15     16     17     18     19 
Ave.     6.6     6.7     6.8     7.2     7.4     7.3     7.3     7.7     8.0     8.0     8.6     8.6 

From  these  figures  it  appears  that  memory  norms 
for  digits  cannot  be  established  for  each  age.  They 
seem  to  be  approximately  the  same  for  several  ages : 
8  to  10  (6  digits),  11  to  15  (7  digits),  and  16  to  19  (8 
digits).  It  would  not  be  profitable  at  this  time  to 
enter  upon  a  discussion  of  age-norms  for  digits  in 
the  light  of  these  and  other  available  data.  To  es- 
tablish these  norms  upon  a  satisfactory  basis  far 
more  children  in  each  chronological  age  must  be 
tested  than  has  hitherto  been  done. 

5.  As  may  be  seen  by  a  cursory  glance  at  the 
graphs,  there  is  a  continuity  of  variation  in  all  the 
single  traits  tested,  within  the  limits  of  the  ages 
plotted,  for  epileptics.  The  variations  cluster  around 

'Cf.  G.  E.  Johnson,  "Contribution  to  the  Psycholojry  and  PedaRORy 
of  Feeble-Minded  Children,"  Pedagogical  Heminary,  3:    1805,  268-273. 


108        EXPERIMENTAL  STUDIES    OF  MENTAL  DEFECTIVES 

one  type  or  mode  (subject  to  certain  irregularities  in 
some  of  the  traits),  and  it  is  entirely  probable  that 
this  one-type  pattern  of  distribution  would  not  be 
altered  were  the  records  of  normal  subjects  included. 
It  is  impossible  to  group  these  traits  in  epileptics 
into  disparate  classes,  separated  by  intervening 
gaps :  they  vary  continuously  from  lowest  to  high- 
est. Accordingly,  the  epileptic  is  not ' '  abnormal ' '  in 
respect  to  these  traits  in  the  sense  that  he  constitutes 
a  distinct  type,  a  species  apart  from  ordinary  indi- 
viduals. With  all  his  exaggerated  ''variation"  or 
''individuality,"  he  still  shares  with  the  rest  of  us 
a  ' '  common  humanity, ' '  the  common  humanity  of  the 
race.  He  is  not  essentially  different  in  kind  from  the 
ordinary  person.  What  appears  to  be  a  qualitative 
difference  is  probably  an  exaggerated  quantitative 
difference,  because  the  traits  of  the  epileptic  fall 
within  the  surfaces  of  distrilmtion  for  the  human 
kind.  He  occupies  the  lower  extreme  of  the  surface. 
(It  should  be  said  that  I  am  leaving  out  of  the  ac- 
count the  lowest-grade  epileptics,  who  are  not  in- 
cluded in  our  "trait"  curves,  and  that  the  curves 
may  be  considered  only  indirectly  as  distribution 
surfaces.) 
In  conclusion : 

The  great  need  of  a  simple,  objective  scale  for  in- 
tellectually grading  defective  school  children  and 
juvenile  (also  adult)  delinquents,  for  measuring  the 
extent  of  involution  changes  produced  by  dementing 
psychoses,  and  for  classifying  institutional  cases  of 
mental  defectives  of  whatever  kind,  and  the  present 
conspicuous  lack  of  a  generally  accepted  or  satisfac- 
tory method,  is  recognized  on  every  hand.  Neither 
the  educator,  the  alienist,  the  criminologist  nor  the 


VARIATION   OP   MENTAL  AND  PHYSICAL  TRAITS  109 

judge  have  at  their  ready  disposal  a  valid  method 
for  locating  mental  station  and  classifying  individ- 
uals according  to  degree  of  mental  defect.  A  graded 
diagnostic  scale  of  intellectual  development  com- 
mends itself  because  of  its  great  practical  utility, 
even  though  less  valuable  for  the  purpose  of  exact 
scientific  diagnosis.  Because  of  the  present  consid- 
erable utility  of  the  Binet-Simon  scale,  and  its 
greater  prospective  utility,  to  all  students  who  have 
to  do  with  deviating  individuals,  no  pains  should  be 
spared  to  ferret  out  its  present  imperfections,  so 
that  an  improved  scale  may  gradually  be  evolved. 
Until  this  has  been  done  we  may  continue  to  use  the 
present  scale,  confident  that  there  is  no  other  single 
instrument  available  which  gives  us  a  superior  pre- 
liminary survey  of  a  defective  or  mentally  deviating 
individual — a  conclusion  already  emphasized  by  the 
writer  elsewhere.^ 

At  the  same  time  it  is  necessary  to  sound  a  note  of 
warning:  the  function  of  the  B.-S.,  or  any  other 
graded  scale  of  intelligence,  is  to  give  us  a  prelimi- 
nary, and  not  a  final  survey  or  rating  of  the  indi- 
vidual who  may  be  tested.  The  B.-S.  testing  is  not 
to  be  regarded  as  a  finality,  but  merely  as  a  point  of 
departure  for  further  diagnosis.  It  gives  us  the 
first,  and  not  the  final  word  about  an  individual's 
mental  status.  Once  the  individual's  mental  station 
has  been  preliminarily  and  roughly  determined  by  a 
graded  intelligence  scale,  there  remains  the  more 
difficult  task  of  making  a  detailed,  expert  diagnosis 
for  each  case  and  a  diagnosis  of  each  fundamental 
trait  or  capacity. 

•The  New  Clinical  Psychology  and  the  Psycho-Clinicist,  Joumcl  of 
Educational  Ptychology,  2:  1911,  121  and  191. 


110        EXPERIMENTAL  STUDIES   OP  MENTAL  DEFECTIVES 

It  is  folly  to  suppose  that  any  ordinary  grade 
teacher  who  has  taken  a  summer  course  in  clinical 
psychology,  or  that  any  professional  expert  whatso- 
ever who  lacks  technical  training  in  psycho-clinical 
or  psychiatric  methodology,  is  prepared  to  mentally 
diagnose  defective  or  deviating  individuals,  or  to 
conduct  psycho-clinical  research,  or  to  extend  the 
boundaries  of  clinical  psychology.  It  would  be  no 
more  absurd  to  expect  a  teacher  or  preacher  or  law- 
,  yer  or  old-line  experimental  psychologist  to  diagnose 
human  disease  from  reading  a  book  on  medical  diag- 
nosis. The  idea,  unfortunately,  seems  rapidly  to  be 
gaining  ground  that  anyone,  be  he  grade  teacher, 
introspective  psychologist,  practicing  lawyer  or  gen- 
eral medical  practitioner,  is  able  to  make  psychologi- 
cal diagnoses  by  putting  the  child  through  a  few  stock 
psychological  tests.  Nothing  is  more  preposterous. 
The  ability  to  make  psycho-clinical  examinations  and 
diagnoses  requires  as  high  an  order  of  trained  skill  as 
the  ability  to  make  neurological  or  general  physical 
examinations  and  diagnoses.  All  that  can  reason- 
ably be  expected  from  grade  teachers,  or  anyone  who 
has  not  had  considerable  first-hand  experience  in  the 
mental  examination  of  various  kinds  of  mental  de- 
fectives, is  that  they  acquire  sufficient  skill  to  give 
certain  standard  tests,  like  those  of  Binet  and  Simon, 
according  to  directions.  It  is  visionary  to  suppose 
that  a  differential  diagnosis  of  cases  can  be  made  by 
a  few  routine  tests.  The  results  of  such  testing  do 
have  one  value,  however:  they  contribute  valuable 
preliminary  data  for  a  later  individual  differential 
diagnosis  hy  an  experienced  mental  examiner.  Clin- 
ical psychology  will  more  speedily  become  a  genuine 
science  of  the  behavior  of  individual  deviating  and 


VARIATION   OP   MENTAL  AND   PHYSICAL  TRAITS  111 

abnormal  persons,  and  will  develop  a  practically  use- 
ful art  of  orthogenics,  if  we  recognize  at  the  outset 
that  the  problems  of  this  science  are  extremely  com- 
plex, complicated  and  baffling,  and  that  they  can  be 
adequately  handled  only  by  trained  experts. 


GRApti  n. 


B.-S.A^eS     J   ^  S  6  7  S  <d/0///^/3 


A/umher  ofWorc/s  /n  T/iree  Alinutes 

A/0, 
kt/{?rcfs. 
70 


/o     fi     /<«    /3 


VARIATION   OP   MENTAL  AND  PHYSICAL  TRAITS  113 

C/^APh  IF, 

T/'me  to  Read  Selection . 

Sec. 
U5 


A^SA^es  6 


7      8      9 


/O     //      /Z    /3 


Units  /^eprcducec/  from 
Read/n^  S^/^ct/on  . 

/Vo, 

8 
7 

e 

s 

S'S,  /^ <fes      7  B  9  /0///2/3 


114        EXPERIMENTAL  STUDIES   OF  MENTAL  DEFECTIVES 


Grafh      I// 
TtTTie  to  c/o  Form  Board  Test . 


B.-S. A^es    /  Z  3^  6  €  7  8  9/0///Z;3 
£pi/iptic^.  .  .  ,  ,  Feeble  'Minded* 


Grapm    V// 


3-S./lyes 


i  ^  S  6  7  S  9  /O//  /Ji/3 


Graph     I//// 

/I tax/a^ rams   C£yes  F/xatcd ) 


Tnm. 

80 
7S 
70 

65 
60 

5S 
50 
"fS 
^0 

35 


S.-S,  A<jes    V  S  6  7  8  9/0  //  /Z/3 
^^^/]77tero-/i3t Latera/, 


CHAPTER  IV. 

A   PRACTICAL   GUIDE    FOR    THE    ADMINISTRATION    OF    THE 
BINET-SIMON  SCALE  FOR  MEASURING  INTELLIGENCE.^ 

Various  considerations  have  constrained  me  to 
prepare  this  guide.  First,  results  derived  from  the 
application  of  the  B.-S.  scale  to  various  classes  of 
defectives  will  have  no  comparative  value  unless  uni- 
formity is  observed  in  the  administration  of  the 
tests.  Discrepancies  in  the  results  of  different  ex- 
perimenters are  often  entirely  traceable  to  differ- 
ences in  the  method  of  giving  the  tests.  Naturally, 
some  methods  will  be  bad,  some  good  and  some  in- 
different ;  in  any  case,  the  results  will  generally  hinge 
on  the  particular  method  used,  and  they  will  have 
little  comparative  value  unless  a  standardized  pro- 
cedure has  been  followed.  In  the  simpler  tests  the 
standardization  will  often  not  need  to  be  elaborate, 
but  a  minimal  amount  is  always  essential. 

Secondly,  it  is  my  experience  that  uniformity  in 
experimental  procedure  is  out  of  the  question  in  any 
branch  of  psychological  research  unless  the  condi- 
tions, method  and  proced^ire  are  definitely  and  fully 
formulated.  There  is  a  peculiarly  urgent  need  for 
explicit  directions  in  the  administration  of  the  B.-S. 
scale,  because  the  tests  are  being  given  by  persons 
with  little,  if  any,  scientific   (and  particularly  any 

'Reprinted,  by  permission,  with  minor  alterations,  from  The  Pay- 
choloffical  Clinic,  5 :  1911,  217-238. 

116 


GUIDE   FOB  ADMINISTRATION   OF  TBSTS  117 

psychological)  training,  and  who  therefore  are  in  no 
position  to  formulate  a  correct  procedure  for  them- 
selves, nor  to  foresee  or  circumvent  the  methodologi- 
cal pitfalls  which  lurk  in  all  kinds  of  scientific  work. 
Hence,  to  be  of  practical  value  the  directions  for 
handling  the  B.-S.  scale  should  be  given  in  the  form 
of  a  compact,  condensed  guide,  instead  of  being  scat- 
tered throughout  a  bulky  text,  and  the  procedure,  the 
questions  or  directions,  should  be  so  formulated  that 
they  can  be  used  verbatim. 

Thirdly,  some  of  the  tests  have  not  as  yet  been 
sufficiently  detailed,  conditioned  or  standardized, 
obviously  because  this  cannot  be  satisfactorily  done 
a  priori,  but  only  after  extensive  testing.  The  scale 
has  now  been  used  and  criticised  somewhat  freely,  so 
that  we  are  in  a  position  to  improve  the  procedure  at 
various  points  and  to  offer  various  suggestions.  In 
doing  this  it  is  advisable  to  proceed  along  conserva- 
tive lines  and  disregard  such  suggestions  as  have  not 
been  subjected  to  the  test  of  experience. 

Fourthly,  as  shown  in  the  preceding  pages,  the 
1908  scale  itself,  aside  from  the  procedure,  is  imper- 
fect at  various  points,  whence,  while  these  imperfec- 
tions are  not  such  as  to  render  the  1908  scale  worth- 
less, there  is  imperative  need  to  carry  forward  the 
work  of  revision  and  improvement,  so  that  we  may 
eventually  obtain  a  maximally  reliable  scale.  But 
this  work  (with  normal  children,  of  course)  cannot 
be  satisfactorily  done  unless  a  fairly  uniform  and 
standardized  procedure  is  followed ;  without  this  we 
can  expect  nothing  but  conflict  and  discrepancy.  It 
does  not  seem  advisable  to  revise  the  1908  scale  for 
American  use  until  it  has  been  more  extensively  tried 
out  in  accordance  with  a  standardized  procedure. 


118        EXPERIMENTAL  STUDIES   OP  MENTAL  DEFECTIVES 

The  1911  revisions  do  not  commend  themselves  to  the 
writer.  Elsewhere^  the  suggestion  has  been  made 
that  workers  who  use  the  B.-S.  tests  for  research 
purposes  should  publish  their  results  in  terms  of  the 
complete,  standardized  1908  scale. 

It  is  in  the  hope  of  aiding  the  work  of  standardiz- 
ing the  experimental  procedure  that  the  following 
guide  has  been  prepared — not  as  a  finality,  but  as  a 
practical  pathfinder.  The  attempt  has  been  made  to 
outline  the  procedure  which  I  have  found  most  satis- 
factory, but  advantage  has  also  been  taken  of  the 
suggestions  of  other  writers.  To  explain  why  one 
form  of  procedure  should  be  used  and  another 
avoided,  or  to  enter  upon  an  explanation  or  justifica- 
tion of  the  tests  themselves,  would  require  more 
space  than  is  here  available.  It  is  intended  to  make 
this  guide  supplement,  rather  than  supplant,  the 
statements  or  texts  already  extant.  It  may  reason- 
ably be  expected  that  anyone  who  intends  to  use  the 
scale  should  familiarize  himself  with  at  least  the 
English  versions.* 

I  have  followed  the  1908  series,  except  that  the 

'J.  E.  Wallace  Wallin.  Danger  Signals  in  Clinical  and  Applied 
Psychology.    Journal  of  Educational  Psychology,  2  :  1911,  224. 

*Cf.  BiNET  ET  Simon.  Le  Developpment  de  Vintelligence  chez  let 
enfants.  Annfe  Psychologique,  Tome  XIV.  Otto  Bobebtag.  Veber 
IntelUgenzpriifungen  {nach  der  Methode  von  Binet  und  Simon). 
Zeitschrift  ftir  angewandte  Psychologic,  5 :  1911,  pp.  105-203.  Henby 
H.  GoDDABD.  Binefs  Measuring  Scale  for  Intelligence.  The  Training 
School,  6 :  No.  11,  1910.  E.  B.  Huey.  The  Binet  Scale  for  Measur- 
ing Intelligence  and  Retardation.  The  Journal  of  Educational  Psy- 
chology, 1 :  1910,  435f.  Kathebine  L.  Johnson.  An  English  Ver- 
sion of  M.  Binefs  Testa  for  the  Measurement  of  Intelligence.  Train- 
ing School  Record,  London,  November,  1910.  F.  Kuhlmann.  Binet 
and  Simon's  System  for  Measuring  the  Intelligence  of  Children.  Jour- 
nal of  Psycho-Asthenics,  15:  1911,  Nos.  3,  4.  Guy  M.  Whipple. 
Manual  of  Mental  and  Physical  Tests.  Baltimore :  Warwick  &  York, 
Inc.,  1910,  Chapter  13. 


GUIDE  FOR  ADMINISTRATION   OP  TESTS  119 

tests  for  idiocy,  1  to  6,  have  been  added  from  the  1905 
series.  Tests  17a  and  50a  have  also  been  added. 
The  order  in  which  the  tests  appear  corresponds 
closely  with  the  originals. 

THE    BINET-SIMON    DIAGNOSTIC    TESTS     OF    MENTAL    AGE 
( INTELLECTUAI-.  DEVELOPMENT  ) . 

(Abbreviations:   S  =  subject.    E  =  experimenter. 
+  =  passed.    —  =  failed.) 

Name  Address  Born  Place 

of  birth  Nationality  Sex 

Health  Physical  defects  Speech  de- 

fects School  grade  School  stand- 

ing (years  pedagogically  retarded  or  accel- 

erated) Examined  By 

Mental  condition  during  test  General  re- 

sults :  passed  tests  of  mental  age  Chro- 

nological (actual)  age  Years  retarded  in- 

tellectually Degree  of  Mentality:    Super- 

normal, NORMAL,  subnormal,  BACKWARD,  FEEBLE- 
MINDED (Low,  Middle  or  High  Idiot;  L.,  M.,  or  H. 
Imbecile;  L.,  M.,  or  H.  Moron). 

Tests  for  Idiocy — Mentality  of  1  to  2  Years. 
Age  1. 

1.  Move  lighted  match  slowly  before  S's  eyes  (or 
ring  bell  from  behind  S).  Mark  -f  if  eyes  follow  or 
S  listens.    Watch  for  incoordinated  eye  movements. 

2.  Place  small  block  (cube)  in  palm  of  S's  hand, 
with  statement,  ''Here  is  something  for  you."  +  if 
S  grasps  and  handles.  Prehension  from  tactual 
stimulation. 


120        EXPERIMENTAL  STUDIES   OP  MENTAL  DEFECTIVES 

3.  Move  colored  ball  or  cylinder,  suspended  by 
string,  slowly  before  S's  face  (eyes)  or  hands,  with- 
out touching.    +  if  S  grasps  and  handles. 

Age  2. 

4.  Hold  before  S,  or  place  within  S's  reach,  a 
piece  each  of  candy  (or  cookie)  and  wood  of  equal 
size.  Avoid  favored  position  for  either.  +  if  candy 
is  chosen. 

5.  Wrap  paper  about  candy  in  S's  sight  and  hand 
packet  to  S.    +  if  S  removes  paper  before  eating. 

6.  Imitations  :  E  extends  hand  for  greeting  as  S 
enters  room.  ''Do  as  I  do;"  or:  "Do  this  way." 
E  claps  hands ;  hands  in  front,  on  head  or  shoulders ; 
rises  on  toes,  etc. 

Commands  (by  gestures  or  words) :  *'Sit  down," 
''Stand  up,"  "Shake  hands,"  "Pick  up"  (object 
purposely  dropped  by  E),  "Give  me  that  book."  + 
if  S  imitates  simple  movements  or  executes  simple 
commands.  Watch  for  failure  through  negativism 
or  stubbornness. 

Tests  for  Imbecility — ^Mentality  of  3  to  7  Years. 

Age  3. 

7.  "Where  are  your  eyes!"  "Nose?"  "Mouth?" 
"Hair?"  Or:  "Open  your  mouth."  "Close  your 
eyes,"  "Touch  your  nose."  +  if  S  correctly  points 
to  parts. 

8.  "Repeat"  [alternative  forms:  "Say  after 
me, "  or :  "  See  if  you  can  say  just  what  I  say  without 
making  a  single  mistake. "  Or:  "I'm  going  to  read 
a  sentence   (or  tell  a  little  story).     When  I  get 


GUIDE   FOB  ADMINISTRATION    OP  TESTS  121 

through  I  want  you  to  say  it  word  for  word,  just  as  I 
did,  without  a  single  mistake.  Now  listen  care- 
fully"] :— 

'*  *It  is  cold  and  snowing.'  (Say  that.)  Or:  'My 
dog's  name  is  Fido.'  Or :  'In  summer  it  is  warm.'  " 
E  speaks  slowly  (not  too  slowly,  or  haltingly),  dis- 
tinctly, with  expression,  while  there  is  no  noise  and 
S  is  attentive.  Shield  sentences  from  S's  eyes.  No 
repetitions  allowed.  E  records  reproduction  ver- 
batim. 

Six  syllables  in  one  sentence.  Use  other  six  syl- 
lables in  single,  complete,  easy,  concrete  sentences 
if  above  become  familiar,  -f  if  S  reproduces  one  of 
the  three  absolutely  correct.    (Cf.  Tests  17a,  21,  58.) 

9.  "Repeat"  ["I'm  going  to  say  some  numbers. 
Listen  carefully,  because  as  soon  as  I  get  through  I 
want  you  to  say  them  just  as  I  did.  Now  listen"] : 
*7  2,'  ('Say  that.'  Or:  'What  did  I  say?') ;  or: 
'9  1;'  or:  '3  8.'"  See  directions  under  8.  If 
necessary,  illustrate  thus:  "so  when  I  say  '8  5,' 
you  must  also  say  '8  5.'  "  Pronounce  digits  dis- 
tinctly once,  as  single,  detached  units,  without  ac- 
cent, one-half  second  apart.  Avoid  consecutive  num- 
bers. Shield  numbers  from  S's  eyes.  Two  digits. 
One  out  of  three  absolutely  correct  passes.  (Cf. 
Tests  14,  31,  50a,  56.) 

10.  "What  do  you  see  in  this  picture?"  "What 
is  it  about?"  Or:  "Look  at  this  picture  carefully 
and  tell  me  what  you  see,  what  it  is  about. ' '  If  nec- 
essary, urge;  "anything  else?"  Show  S  only  fa- 
miliar pictures  in  colors  of  people  and  situations, 
strongly  suggestive  of  action.  Of  the  Jingleman 
Jack  pictures  (these  and  all  the  other  supplies  for 


122        EXPERIMENTAL  STUDIES   OP  MENTAL  DEFECTIVES 

the  Binet-Simon  tests  can  be  secured  from  C.  H. 
Stoelting  Company,  121  N.  Green  street,  Chicago, 
111.)  the  best  are  probably  the  pictures  of  a  man  chas- 
ing children  from  the  steps,  of  the  plumber  and  the 
defective  water  pipe,  of  carpenters  building  a  house, 
of  a  man  mowing  grass,  and  of  a  man  cutting  hair. 
All  these  are  admirable  for  purposes  of  simple 
enumeration  and  description,  but  not  so  good  for 
eliciting  an  interpretative  response.  Pictures  equally 
good  for  all  three  purposes  are  needed.  Simple 
enumeration  of  objects  passes  (series  of  substan- 
tives.   (Cf.  Test  32.) 

11.  ''What  is  your  name!"  Preferably  asked  at 
beginning  of  sitting.    Family  name  required. 

Age  4. 

12.  ''Are  you  a  boy  or  a  girl?"  (asked  of  boys). 
"Are  you  a  girl  or  a  boy?"  (of  girls). 

13.  Show  successively  a  key,  penny,  knife  (or 
pencil).  ' '  You  know  what  that  is.  Well,  what  is  it  ? " 
Correct  naming  or  interpretative  actions  pass. 

14.  "Repeat:  '7  4  8.'  Or:  '5  9  7.'  Or: 
'1  6  3.'  "  Follow  directions  in  Tests  8  and  9. 
Three  digits. 

15.  "Which  of  these  two  lines  (pointing  to  them) 
is  the  longer!" 


Point  to  both  at  once. 
Cover  rest  of  paper 
when  necessary.  Hesi- 
tation =  — . 


GUIDE   FOB   ADMINISTRATION   OF  TESTS 


123 


Age  5. 

16.  ''Here  are  a  couple  of  boxes,  which  look  alike, 
don 't  they  ? "  * '  But  they  don 't  weigh  the  same.  One 
is  hea^der  than  the  other.  Now  I  want  you  to  lift  the 
one  after  the  other,  this  way,  and  give  me  the  one 
which  feels  the  heavier.  Feel  carefully."  E  takes 
each  box  successively  between  two  fingers,  or  the 
thumb  and  finger,  of  the  right  hand,  and  lifts  it  about 
1  cm.  Use  similar  metal  salve  boxes  of  the  same  size. 
Filling  must  not  rattle.  +  if  right  in  2  of  3  trials, 
with  3  and  12  grams  (or  repeat  with  6  and  15  grams). 

17.  ^'Draw  a  fig- 
ure like  this  (as 
nearly  like  this  as 
you  can)":  +  if 
right  angles  are 
fairly  well  pre- 
served, if  figure  has 
squared  appearance, 
or  is  recognized  as 
an  approximate 
square.  Proportions 
need  not  be  exactly 
correct.  S  must  use 
pen.  Record  time. 
E,  non-committal,  asks  after  S  has  finished:  ''Is  it 
good?"    ''Is  it  like  this!" 

17a.  ' '  Repeat : '  In  the  winter  time  we  skate  on  the 
ice.' 

Or:  *I  heard  a  bird  singing  in  the  treetops.' 
Or:  'We  should  starve  if  we  had  nothing  to  eat.'  " 
Ten  syllables.    Follow  directions  in  Test  8. 

18.    Place  on  table  before  S  a  rectangular  visiting 


124        EXPERIMENTAL  STUDIES   OF  MENTAL  DEFECTIVES 

card,  about  4.5  by  7.5  cm.,  and  also  triangles  cut  diag- 
onally from  a  similar  card  and  placed  thus : 


b^ 


V 


''Put  these  two  pieces  (pointing  to  the  triangles) 
together  so  that  the  two  will  look  like  this  one  (point- 
ing to  the  rectangle ) . "  If  necessary :  ' '  Change  them 
about  until  you  get  them  right.  Now  quickly. ' '  Re- 
peat instructions  if  necessary.  Restore  triangles  to 
original  position  if  they  get  turned  over.  At  close : 
''Are  you  done?"  or:  "Is  it  right!"  E  should  not 
indicate  approval  or  disapproval  by  manner  or  word. 
Record  time. 

19.  Place  four  bright  pennies,  heads  up,  I/2  cm. 
apart,  in  a  row.  "You  know  what  these  are,  don't 
you."  If  not,  E  informs  S.  "How  many  pennies 
are  there!  Point  to  each  one  as  you  count  them 
aloud."    Cf.  Test  33. 

Age  6. 

20.  "Hold  up  your  right  hand."  "Touch  your 
left  ear."  (Alternative:  "Touch  your  right  ear." 
"Hold  up  your  left  hand.")  A  mistake  rapidly  cor- 
rected =  +.  The  slightest  doubt,  if  not  removed  by 
a  further  question  (left  eye,  right  leg),  =  — .  E 
gives  no  hint  by  word  or  manner. 

21.  ' ' Repeat :  'In  the  summer  time  we  like  to  take 
long  morning  walks  in  the  park. ' 

Or:  'When  we  get  up  in  the  morning  we  dress 
and  then  have  our  breakfast.' 


GUIDE   FOR  ADMINISTRATION    OF  TESTS  125 

Or:  *I  saw  two  horses  pulling  a  wagon  on  a 
very  steep  road.'  "  See  directions  in  Test  8.  Six- 
teen syllables. 

22.  Show  the  pretty  and  ugly  faces  in  pairs. 
"Which   of  these   two   faces   is   the   prettier    (or 
uglier)?"    Or:  "Which  is  the  good-looking  one?* 
12      3      All  three  must  be  correct.     Both  arf. 
pretty  —  — . 

23.  "You  know  what  a  fork  is,  don't  you?" 
("You  have  seen  a  fork."  "Well,  tell  me,  what  is  a 
fork?'*  If  necessary,  repeat  and  urge.  Similarly 
for  chair,  table,  horse,  house,  mama.  (Alternative 
words :  spoon,  bed,  drum,  cow,  father.)  Record  re- 
plies verbatim.  Definition  by  stating  use,  or  mate- 
rial or  parts  of  object  passes  (3  out  of  5).  E.  g.,  a 
fork  is  to  eat  with.  A  fork  is  made  of  wood  and  iron. 
A  fork  has  a  handle  and  tines.  Classificatory  or 
logical  definition  (class  or  superordinate  term) 
passes  Test  44.  In  case  a  classificatory  definition 
has  not  been  proffered  spontaneously,  say,  after  S 
has  finished  the  series:  "Good,  so  we  may  say  that 

a  mama  is  a ?"    And  similarly  with  the  other 

words,  proceeding  in   reverse  order    (i.  e.,  house, 
horse,  table,  chair). 

24.  "Now  I  want  you  to  do  something  for  me  (do 
me  a  little  favor).  Take  this  key  and  place  it  on  that 
chair  (pointing);  then  shut  (or  open)  that  door 
(pointing);  and  then  bring  me  that  box.  Remem- 
ber, first  the  key  on  the  chair,  then  shut  the  door, 
then  bring  the  box.  Now  go."  Make  certain  that 
the  child  perceives  the  objects.  No  aid.  Triple  or- 
der must  be  entirely  correctly  executed. 

25.  "How   old    are    you?"     Answer   in    years 


126       EXPERIMENTAL  STUDIES   OP  MENTAL  DEFECTIVES 


GUIDE  FOE  ADMINISTRATION   OP  TESTS  127 

passes.    Verify  by  official  record.    (Supplementary: 
''When  is  your  birthday!") 

26.  *'Is  this  morning  or  afternoon" — or:  *'Is  it 
the  morning  or  afternoon  now  I ' '  Reverse  order  in 
the  afternoon.    Emphasize  both  terms  equally. 

Age  7. 

27.  Show  the  unfinished  figures  (p.  128)  one  at 
the  time.  "What  is  lacking  (or  missing)  in  this  pic- 
ture (for  the  standing  woman)  I"  Or:  ''in  this  face 
(for  each  of  the  faces)?"  "Look  at  it  carefully." 
Three  correct  out  of  4  pass.  Expose  pictures  one  at 
a  time.  ' '  Eyes ' '  instead  of  ' '  eye, ' '  and  ' '  hands ' '  in- 
stead of  "arms"  ~  +.  "One  ear"  for  face  without 
eye,  and  "one  eye"  for  face  without  nose  =  — . 

28.  "How  many  fingers  have  you  on  your  right 
hand?"  "On  your  left?"  "On  both  hands?" 
Prompt  answers,  without  counting,  required  for  all 
three  questions.  Correct  number  of  fingers,  with  or 
without  thumbs,  passes. 

29.  Ask  S  to  write  the  following  from  copy : 

("Copy  these  words."    Record  time.    -|-  if  legible 
to  one  unfamiUar  with  original. 

30.  "Here  is  a  figure  that  I  want  you  to  draw. 
Make  it  as  much  like  this  (pointing  to  the  diamond) 
as  you  can."  Or:  "Draw  one  like  it."  Record  time. 
Must  be  recognizable  as  a  diamond.  (See  Test  17.) 
(Supplementary  question:  "What  do  you  call  the 
drawing?" 


128        EXPERIMENTAL  STUDIES    OF  MENTAL  DEFECTIVES 


GUIDE   FOR  ADMINISTRATION   OF  TESTS  129 


31.  ''Repeat:  '4739  5.'  Or:  '1  4 
6  2  8.'  Or:  '4  5  9  3  7.'"  See  directions 
in  Tests  8  and  9.    Five  digits. 

32.  Same  as  Test  10.  Description  of  actions  and 
scenes  passes.  S  must  tell  what  is  taking  place,  what 
is  being  done,  in  the  picture.  Sentences  or  phrases, 
instead  of  disconnected  words.  Correct  expla,nation 
or  interpretation  of  the  pictures  (S  tells  why  they 
are  doing  so  and  so — subjective  interpretation  of 
actor's  characters  or  motives),  also  passes  this  age — 
and  possibly  entitles  him  to  a  credit  in  Age  XII. 

33.  Counts  aloud  13  pennies  as  in  Test  19.  S 
must  touch  each  with  finger.  No  omissions  or  double 
countings. 

34.  "What  is  that?"  Display  (but  not  in  the  or- 
der of  value)  successively  the  heads  of  a  bright 
penny,  quarter,  dime  and  nickel.  No  error.  Cf. 
Test  48. 

Test  for  Moronity — Mentality  of  8  to  12  Years. 

Age  8. 

35.  "I  want  you  to  read  this  piece  (or  story) 
aloud."    Place  the  following  before  S  (53  words) : 


130       EXPERIMENTAL  STUDIES   OF  MENTAL  DEFECTIVES 

Three  Houses  Burned. 
New  York,  September  5th. — A  fire  last  night  burned 
three  houses  in  Water  Street.  It  took  some  time  to  put 
it  out.  The  loss  was  fifty  thousand  dollars,  and  seventeen 
families  lost  their  homes.  In  saving  a  girl  who  was  asleep 
in  a  bed,  a  fireman  was  burned  on  the  hands. 

Two  seconds  after  S  has  finished,  continue :  *  *  Now 
tell  me  what  you  read  about."  "What  did  it  say?" 
"Tell  me  as  well  as  you  can  in  your  own  words." 
Later:  "Anything  else?"  No  specific  questions,  no 
aid  (except  to  pronounce  difficult  words),  but  give 
time  enough.  Purpose  of  test  unknown  to  S.  Record 
time  of  reading,  miscalled  words  and  verbatim  re- 
production. Observe  speech  defects.  Score  as  fol- 
lows: 

New  York,  |  September  5th.  |  A  fire  |  last  night  | 
burned  |  three  houses  |  in  Water  Street.  |  It  took 
some  time  |  to  put  it  out.  |  The  loss  |  was  fifty 
thousand  dollars,  |  and  seventeen  families  |  lost  their 
homes,  |  In  saving  |  a  girl  |  who  was  asleep  |  in  a 
bed,  I  a  fireman  |  was  burned  |  on  the  hands.  |  (20 
memories.)  One-half  credit  may  be  scored  for  the 
following  part-unities:  September  |  5th  |  three  | 
houses  I  Water  |  Street  |  seventeen  |  families  |  fifty 
thousand  |  dollars.  Unessential  words  may  be 
omitted  without  loss.  Two  memories  or  unities  (sim- 
ple ideas,  as  above)  pass. 

36.  Show  S  3  one-cent  and  3  two-cent  stamps, 
pasted  in  a  row  on  a  card  thus :  1  1  1  2  2  2. 
"You  know  what  these  are?"  If  S  does  not  know, 
tell  him  the  value  of  the  stamps.  "How  much  would 
you  have  to  pay  for  all  of  them  at  the  postoffice?" 


GUIDE   FOR   ADMINISTRATION   OP   TESTS  131 

Or:  ''What  do  they  all  cost?"  "Point  to  each  one 
and  count  them  up."    Time  limit:    10  sec. 

37.  Place  saturated  (but  not  glossy)  red,  yellow, 
green,  and  blue  papers  (2  by  6  cm.),  pasted  on  a  gray 
cardboard,  before  S.  Point  to  each  color  in  succes- 
sion, beginning  with  red,  as  rapidly  as  possible,  say- 
ing: ''What  do  you  call  this  color?"  (Or:  "I  want 
you  to  name  these  colors,  as  I  point  to  them,  as  fast 
as  you  can.")  Don't  ask,  "What  kind  of  a  color  is 
that?"  or:  "Which  color  is  that?"  Must  name  all 
correctly.   Time  limit:    6  sec. 

38.  "I  want  you  to  count  backward  from  20  to  0 
(or  1)  as  fast  as  you  can."  If  necessary,  add:  "Be- 
gin with  20,  then  19,  and  so  on.  Now  quickly. ' '  No 
prompting.  One  omission  or  transposition  allowed. 
Time  limit:    20  sec. 

39.  Give  S  a  pen.  "I  want  you  to  write  a  little 
sentence  (or  story)  which  I  shall  give  you.  Now 
listen  carefully:  'The  pretty  little  girl.'  (Or:  'Cats 
like  to  play  with  rats.')  Now  write  that."  E  may 
repeat  sentence,  but  should  not  show  copy.  Record 
writing  time.  Orthography  need  not  be  perfect. 
Tell  S,  if  necessary,  to  spell  the  best  he  can.  Must 
be  legible  to  one  unfamiliar  with  original. 

40.  "You  know  what  paper  is?"  "And  cloth?'* 
"Are  they  the  same  (or  alike)?"  "No;  why  not?" 
"What  is  the  difference?"  Same  procedure  for 
butterfly  and  fly,  wood  and  glass.  For  the  latter  two 
the  questions  may  be  abbreviated  if  S  has  grasped 

the  idea:  "What  is  the  difference  between and 

?"     (Alternative  pairs:    knife  and  fork,  sugar 

and  salt,  stone  and  egg.)  The  distinctions  should  be 
made  from  memory.  Time:  2  minutes  for  2  of 
the  3. 


132       EXPERIMENTAL   STUDIES  OP  MENTAL  DEFECTIVES 

Age  9. 

41.  ''What  date  is  it  today!"  If  necessary: 
**What  day  of  the  week  (or:  which  one  of  the  week 
days?"  ''Whatwowi/if"  ''What  day  of  the  mowf^ 
{number  of  the  day)  ?"  "What  yearr'  Date  (day 
of  month)  may  be  three  days  wrong. 

42.  ' '  Now  tell  me  the  names  of  all  the  days  of  the 
week  in  the  right  order  as  fast  as  you  can."  "What 
do  we  call  the  week  days  ?  Now  quickly. ' '  May  start 
on  any  day.  No  prompting.  Time  limit:  10  sec. 
(Supplementary  questions:  "How  many  days  in  a 
week?"  "If  today  is  Monday  (or  Thursday,  or 
Saturday),  what  day  was  yesterday?") 

43.  "Suppose  that  we  play  store  a  while.  You 
are  the  storekeeper  and  I  come  to  your  store  to  buy 
4  cents'  worth  of  candy  (or  gum,  peanuts,  etc.),  and 
give  you  this  quarter  (or  25-cent  piece).  How  much 
change  (money)  would  you  have  to  give  me  back! 
There  is  the  money;  now  pick  out  the  change  and 
hand  it  to  me. "  If  S  says  21  cents,  reply :  ' '  Good ; 
now  count  out  the  money. ' '  Place  on  the  table,  face 
up,  without  overlapping,  13  pennies,  5  nickels  and  3 
dimes.  S  must  actually  count  out  the  change.  The 
test  is  in  need  of  standardization.  E  may  try  25 
cents  —  6,  or  25  cents  —  5,  or  25  cents  —  7  (25  cents 
—  9  is  too  hard) ;  or  $1.00  —  80  cents. 

44.  Same  as  Test  23.  Cla^sificatory  definition 
passes  (giving  class  term  or  superordinate  concept) ; 
e.  g.,  "A  table  is  a  piece  of  furniture;  a  chair  is  a 
movable  seat;  a  fork  is  a  table  or  eating  utensil;  a 
horse  is  an  animal,  or  a  four-footed  animal  that 
pulls ;  a  mama  is  a  mother,  or  a  woman  with  a  child." 

45.  Same  as  35.    Six  memories  pass. 


GUIDE    FOR   ADMINISTRATION    OF   TESTS  133 

46.  Place  the  boxes  fairly  near  together,  but  out 
of  correct  order,  in  a  row  before  S.  ''Here  we  have 
five  boxes.  They  look  alike,  but  don't  weigh  alike. 
I  want  you  to  lift  them  this  way  (see  Test  16),  and 
give  me  the  one  that  feels  the  heaviest.  Feel  care- 
fully." After  S  has  selected  the  heaviest:  ''Now 
give  me  the  heaviest  one  of  the  four. ' '  Then :  ' '  Now 
the  heaviest  of  the  three,"  etc.  E  places  boxes  on 
table  in  the  order  selected  by  S,  and  makes  a  record 
of  each  trial  (paste  initials  of  weights  on  under  side). 
S  may  be  allowed  to  revise.  ("Are  you  satisfied?" 
"If  you  like,  lift  them  rapidly  again" — in  the  order 
in  which  selected).  Use  3,  6,  9,  12  and  15  grams. 
Boxes  must  be  indistinguishable.  Time:  3  minutes 
for  two  correct  in  three  trials  if  necessary.  (Supple- 
mentary: number  of  mistakes  =  the  number  of 
changes  needed  to  give  the  right  order,  from  2  to  12.) 

Age  10. 

47.  "Tell  me  the  names  of  all  the  months  of  the 
year  in  the  right  order  as  fast  as  you  can."  "What 
do  we  call  the  months!"  May  start  with  any  month. 
No  prompting.  One  omission  or  inversion  allowed. 
Verbatim  record.    Time  limit:    15  sec. 

48.  "  What  is  that  ? "  Or :  "  What  do  you  call  this 
coin  (or  bill)?"  As  in  Test  34.  Use  cent,  nickel, 
dime,  quarter,  half-dollar,  dollar,  and  one,  two,  five 
and  ten  dollar  bills. 

49.  "I  want  you  to  make  up  a  sentence  in  which 
you  must  use  the  words  boy,  river  and  ball  (or  New 
York,  money,  river,  or  girl,  dollar,  lake).  You  can 
make  the  sentence  long  or  short,  and  you  can  use  any 
other  words  that  you  like,  but  you  must  use  the  three 


134        EXPERIMENTAL   STUDIES  OF   MENTAL  DEFECTIVES 

words  hoy,  river  and  hall. "  Or :  *  *  Tell  me  something 
about  a  boy,  a  river  and  a  ball,  all  in  one  sentence." 
If  S  stops  with  two  of  the  words:  *'But  you  must 
also  say  something  about  hall  (or  whichever  word  is 
omitted)  in  the  same  sentence.  Now  try  again." 
The  statements  may  be  imaginative,  but  should  not  be 
absurd.  A  campound  sentence  with  two  distinct 
ideas  (two  co-ordinate  phrases)  passes:  e.  g.,  '*The 
boy  crossed  the  river,  and  went  to  a  ball."  ''New 
York  has  several  rivers,  and  very  much  money." 
Three  sentences  or  three  independent  clauses  count 
failure;  e.  g.,  ''The  boy  is  strong;  the  river  is  wide; 
and  the  ball  is  round."  Cf.  52.  Time  limit:  1 
minute. 

50.  Ask  S,  moderately  slowly  and  distinctly,  the 
following  questions  (one  repetition  allowed  if  neces- 
sary):  "What's  the  thing  to  do?"  (or:  "What 
ought  you  to  do?") : 

(1)  "When  you  miss  a  train?" 

(2)  "When  a  friend  hits  you  without  meaning 
to?" 

(3)  "When  you  break  something  that  belongs  to 
somebody  else?" 

(4)  "When  you  are  on  the  way  to  school  and 
find  that  it  is  later  than  usual  (or  notice  that  you'll 
be  late  for  school)?" 

(5)  "Before  you  take  part  in  something  impor- 
tant (or  in  some  important  business)  ?" 

(6)  "What  should  you  answer  when  asked  to  say 
what  you  think  (or  give  your  opinion)  about  someone 
you  don 't  know  very  well  ? ' ' 

(7)  "Why  should  we  forgive  a  wrong  done  by 
someone  when  he  is  angry  (or  when  he  is  mad)  more 
quickly  than  when  he  is  not  angry?" 


GUIDE   FOR   ADMINISTRATION    OF   TESTS  135 

(8)  ''Why  should  you  make  up  your  mind  about 
(judge)  a  person  by  his  actions  rather  than  by  his 
words  (or  by  what  he  does  rather  than  what  he 
says)r^  Record  answers.  Five  correct  pass.  Time 
limit:  20  sec.  each.  Use  judgment  in  marking. 
Illustrative  replies :  (1)  +  :  Wait  for  the  next.  Take 
another.  —  :  Hurry.  Go  to  the  next  station.  Walk. 
(2)  +  :  Forgive.  Excuse.  Don't  be  angry.  Don't 
cry.  Don't  do  anything  to  him.  Don't  tell  mother. 
Say  nothing.    Tell  him  to  be  more  careful  next  time. 

—  :  Hit  him.  Cry.  Tell  mother  or  ''grown-ups." 
Get  angry.  Avoid  him.  (3)  +  :  Apologize.  Offer 
to  pay,  or  buy  another.  Fix  it.  —  :  Run  away.  Let 
it  lie.  Let  him  break  something  of  yours.  Weep. 
It  is  a  shame.  (4)  -f  :  Hurry,  run.  If  S  says :  "Ask 
pardon  of,  or  tell,  teacher,"  give  chance  to  correct 
by  emphasizing:  "When  you  are  still  on  the  way!" 

—  :  Go  home.  Go  the  next  session.  Cry.  Think 
over  what  to  say.  Get  up  earlier.  Ask  what  time  it 
is.  (5)  +  :  Prepare.  Think  it  over.  Get  ready. 
Practice.  Ask  someone.  —  :  See  if  you  have  time. 
Ask  if  you  dare.  Say  you'll  do  it.  (6)  +  :  I  don't 
know.  I  don 't  know  him.  Say  nothing.  Say  what  I 
know.  —  :  I  don 't  know  what  his  name  is.  Ask  what 
his  name  is.  He  is  good,  or  he  is  bad.  (7)  +  :  Be- 
cause when  angry  we  act  without  thinking,  can't  con- 
trol ourselves,  not  responsible.  —  :  Because  we 
ought  to  forgive.  The  Bible  says  so.  (8)  -f  :  Ac- 
tions speak  louder  than  words.  Can  see  what  he 
does.  May  not  mean  what  he  says.  —  :  Because  he 
is  wrong. 

Supplementary  problems:  the  following  may, 
after  trial,  be  fitted  into  their  proper  ages.  Some  of 
the  above  are  too  easy,  others  too  hard  for  Age  X : 


136       EXPERIMENTAL   STUDIES  OP   MENTAL  DEFECTIVES 

*'What  ought  you  to  do?"  (1)  ''When  you  feel 
sleepy?"  ''Cold?"  "Sick?"  (2)  "When  some- 
body has  stolen  something  (or  your  pencil,  knife, 
ribbon,  etc.)  from  you?"  (3)  "When  somebody  has 
told  a  lie  about  you?"  (4)  "When  the  house  you 
are  living  in  catches  fire?"  (5)  "When  somebody 
says  he  is  sorry  (begs  pardon)  because  he  has  hurt 
(offended  you)?"  (6)  "When  you  have  been  pun- 
ished, although  you  have  done  nothing  wrong?" 
(7)  "When  you  want  to  buy  something  (cap,  ball, 
dress,  doll,  etc.),  but  don't  have  the  money?"  (8) 
"Why  is  it  easier  to  say  that  you'll  do  something 
than  to  c?o  it  ? "  The  first  three  questions  in  the  first 
and  the  first  four  questions  in  the  second  set  are 
easier  than  the  remainder. 

50a.  "Eepeat:  '719653.'  Or:  '4  8  7 
2  5  1.'  Or:  '3  7  6  9  8  2.'"  See  Test  9.  Six 
digits. 

Age  11. 

51.  "I  am  going  to  read  you  some  sentences  in 
which  there  is  something  silly  (foolish,  or  absurd,  or 
a  catch).  Listen  carefully,  and  try  to  tell  me  what 
the  nonsense  is."  If  necessary:  "Can  you  say 
that?"  "Why  not?"  If  the  answer  is  unclear: 
' '  How  should  it  read  ? ' ' 

(1)  "Yesterday  there  was  an  accident  on  the  rail- 
road, but  it  wasn't  serious;  there  were  only  forty- 
eight  killed."  (2)  "The  police  found  yesterday  the 
body  of  a  young  girl  cut  into  eighteen  pieces ;  they 
think  that  she  killed  herself. "  ( "  Do  you  think  so  ? " ) 
(3)  "I  have  three  brothers,  Paul,  Ernest  and  my- 
self." ("Who  were  they,  then?")  (4)  "A  poor  car- 
penter fell,  broke  his  head  and  died.    They  have 


GUIDE    FOR   ADMINISTRATION    OF   TESTS  137 

taken  him  to  the  hospital,  but  do  not  think  that  he 
will  recover."  (**What  did  they  do  that  was  fool- 
ish)!" (5)  ''Someone  said:  *If  I  should  kill  myself, 
I  wouldn't  do  it  on  Friday,  because  Friday  would 
bring  me  bad  luck.'  "  Speak  clearly,  slowly  and 
with  expression.  Time:  about  two  minutes  for  three 
correct. 

Illustrative  marking:  (1)  -f  :  Forty-eight  are 
many.  That  was  serious.  —  :  It  can't  be  serious. 
It  might  have  been  worse.  (2)  -f-  :  Could  not  cut 
herself  into  eighteen  pieces.  —  :  Somebody  may 
have  murdered  her.  She  wouldn't  kill  herself.  (3) 
-f-  :  You  have  only  two  brothers.  You  cannot  be 
your  own  brother.  ''Myself"  is  no  brother.  Should 
not  say  "myself."  —  :  Say  "I"  instead  of  "my- 
self." Place  "I"  before  the  two  brothers.  (4)  +  : 
He  is  already  dead.  A  dead  man  can't  recover. 
Should  not  have  taken  a  dead  man  to  the  hospital. 
—  :  They  can  cure  him  if  he  has  not  hurt  himself 
badly.  He  cannot  live.  (5)  +  :  If  you  kill  yourself, 
the  day  doesn't  matter.  Friday  cannot  bring  bad 
luck  to  a  dead  man.  —  :  That  is  superstition.  Fri- 
day is  no  more  unlucky  than  any  other  day.  He 
wouldn't  commit  suicide. 

Supplementary  list.  After  due  trial  some  of  the 
following  should  prove  available  at  some  level:  (1) 
"Last  night  I  saw  a  man  in  the  street,  with  his  hands 
in  his  pockets  and  twirling  a  cane."  (2)  "Next 
Christmas  was  a  beautiful  day,  and  we  received 
many  presents."  (3)  "Last  Friday  two  of  my 
friends  called  upon  me.  In  the  evening  all  four  of 
us  went  to  the  theatre."  (4)  "It  would  take  us  all 
day  to  walk  from  New  York  to  Chicago."  (5) 
"Johnny  bought  a  little  rubber  ball.  He  paid  $L00 
for  it." 


138        EXPERIMENTAL   STUDIES  OF  MENTAL  DEFECTIVES 

52.  Same  as  Test  49.  Simple  sentence  (single 
idea),  or  complex  co-ordinated  sentence,  passes,  thus : 
**The  boy  threw  the  ball  into  the  river;"  ''As  I  was 
walking  in  New  York,  I  found  money  near  the  river. ' ' 

53.  ''I'm  going  to  give  you  a  few  minutes  in 
which  I  want  you  to  speak  as  many  single  words  as 
you  possibly  can;  not  sentences,  but  single  words; 
any  words  at  all,  just  as  they  come,  like  school,  or 
dog,  or  cap,  or  grass.  Speak  aloud.  Now,  remem- 
ber: just  as  fast  as  you  can."  If  S  stops:  "Don't 
stop."  "More  yet."  Verbatim  record.  Sixty 
words,  exclusive  of  duplicates,  in  three  minutes. 

54.  "You  know  what  kindness  means?"  "What 
does  it  mean  ? "  "  Tell  what  it  is  to  show  kindness. ' ' 
If  necessary:  "Give  an  example."  Allow  time  as 
long  as  S  reflects.  Same  for  charity  and  justice 
{jealousy).  Two  correct,  with  essential  idea  (phrase- 
ology immaterial) :  kindness  requires  notion  of 
goodness,  affection,  sympathy,  helpfulness;  charity, 
of  aid  rendered  unfortunate  people ;  justice,  of  law 
or  rule  or  treatment  according  to  deserts,  fairness. 
Justice  is  to  be  just  =  — . 

55.  "Here  is  a  sentence  (show  the  first  one)  in 
which  the  words  are  all  mixed  up  (or  are  out  of 
place).  I  want  you  to  read  it  through  aloud,  and 
then  put  the  words  together  (orally)  in  the  right 
order,  so  that  they  make  sense."  Or:  "Bead  these 
words  aloud. ' '  After  S  is  through :  ' '  Did  they  make 
any  sense?"  "No,  why  not?"  ("out  of  order"). 
' '  Good ;  now  put  them  together  in  the  right  order. ' ' 
If  S  fails  on  first  sentence,  E  may  arrange  it  for  him, 
but  no  further  aid.  Show  sentences  singly.  Two 
satisfactory.   Time  limit:    1  minute  each. 


GUIDE   POE   ADMINISTRATION   OF  TESTS  139 

a  defends  dog  good  to    asked    paper    the  I 

his   bravely   master  teacher  correct  my  have 

evening    for    we     last 
park  started  the  early 

Age  12. 

56.  ''Repeat:  '2964375.'  Or:  '1  6 
9  5  8  4  7.'  Or:  '9  2  8  5  1  4  6.'"  Direc- 
tions in  Test  9.    Seven  digits. 

57.  "Do  you  know  what  a  rhyme  is!"  "No?" 
It's  a  word  that  sounds  like,  or  ends  like,  another 
word;  as  cat  like  pat,  or  fat,  or  rat.^^  Now  give  me 
three  words  that  sound  like  ball  (or  coy,  day,  mill).''^ 
Time:  1  minute  for  three  rhjTues  with  one  word. 
Trials  with  two  words. 

58.  ' '  Repeat : '  The  other  day  I  saw  in  the  street  a 
pretty  dog  who  carried  in  his  mouth  a  basket  of 
strawberries.  * 

Or:  'Johnny  likes  to  go  on  visits  to  his  grand- 
mother, because  she  always  tells  him  many  funny 
stories. ' 

Or:  'It  should  be  the  wish  of  every  child  to  grow 
up  to  become  an  honest  and  useful  man  or  woman.'  " 
See  Test  8.  Twenty-six  syllables.  One  out  of  three 
correct. 

59.  "Here  are  a  couple  of  questions  that  I  want 
you  to  try  to  answer.  Now  listen.  'A  girl  who  was 
walking  in  the  woods  in  a  park  saw  something  hang- 
ing from  the  branch  of  a  tree  that  made  her  so  much 
afraid  that  she  ran  to  the  nearest  policeman  and  told 
him  what  she  had  seen.'  What  do  you  think  she 
saw?    What  was  it?" 

"  'My  neighbor  has  been  having  strange  visitors. 


140        EXPERIMENTAL   STUDIES  OF   MENTAL  DEFECTIVES 

First  came  a  doctor,  then  a  lawyer,  and  then  a 
preacher. '  Why  did  these  three  go  to  his  house,  the 
one  after  the  other  ?  What  happened  there  ? ' '  Both 
answers  must  be  correct:  (1)  +  :  A  body.  A 
corpse.  A  man  has  hanged  himself .  (2)  +:  Some- 
one is  dying. 

Age  13. 

60.  Have  on  hand  a  supply  of  paper  sheets,  about 
5  or  6  inches  square.  ''Watch  what  I  do.  Now  I  fold 
the  paper  once  this  way  (into  halves).  Now  once 
that  way  (at  right  angles  so  that  the  paper  is  quarto- 
folded).  Now  I  cut  out  a  piece  here  (a  triangular 
hole,  about  1x1  inch,  in  the  middle  of  the  closed 
edge),  and  now  I  cut  off  this  corner  (the  partly 
closed  corner  on  the  same  edge).  How  would  the 
paper  look  now  if  I  should  open  it  like  this  (demon- 
strate with  a  similarly  folded  but  uncut  paper)  ? 
Try  to  imagine  that  you  can  see  it  open  like  this 
paper,  and  draw  it  the  way  you  think  it  will  look 
open  (or  draw  the  holes  as  they  will  look  when  the 
paper  is  open)."  Cut  with  scissors.  Do  not  show 
excised  triangle,  nor  indicate  how  many  diamonds 
there  are.    I  have  given  -f  on  one  diamond. 

As  children  who  mingle  are  likely  to  coach  one  an- 
other, it  is  advisable  to  supplement  the  test,  when 
used  in  the  same  school  or  district,  by  using  one  or 
the  other  of  the  following  variant  forms,  cut  simi- 
larly in  the  closed  edge  of  the  twice-folded  paper : 


GUIDE    FOR   ADMINISTRATION   OF   TESTS 


141 


61.  ''Suppose  I  should  turn  this  lower  half 
(pointing  to  ABC)  around,  and  place  it  against  the 
upper  half  (pointing),  so  that  this  corner  (pointing 
to  C)  would  touch  that  corner  (B),  and  so  that  this 
edge  (CB)  would  touch  this  edge  (BA) ;  what  would 
the  new  card  (form)  look  like  then!  Now  I'll  re- 
move this  lower  part  (place  it  a  short  distance  from 
the  other,  in  the  original  position),  and  I  want  you 
to  try  to  imagine  that  you  see  it  placed  as  I  have  said, 
and  draw  the  whole  figure.  Begin  by  drawing  the 
upper  half  the  way  it  is  lying."  '*(^ood;  now  the 
other  half  the  way  I  said."  Speak  clearly.  One 
repetition  allowed.  No  further  aid.  +  if  angle  at  B 
is  approximately  correct  and  if  AB  is  longer  than 
CB. 


142        EXPERIMENTAL   STUDIES  OP  MENTAL  DEFECTIVES 

62.  *'I'm  going  to  give  you  pairs  of  words  which 
either  mean  pretty  much  the  same  thing,  or  which 
sound  somewhat  alike,  but  have  a  different  meaning. 
I  want  you  to  tell  me  how  they  differ.  What  is  the 
difference  between  them?"  Pleasure  and  honor. 
Evolution  and  revolution.  Poverty  and  misery. 
Event  and  advent.    Pride  and  pretension. 

Pass  if  3  of  5  are  correctly  distinguished  (if  some 
legitimate  difference  is  pointed  out,  however  crude 
the  language,  or  if  the  difference  is  satisfactorily 
illustrated). 

Suggestions  and  General  Directions  for  Administer- 
ing the  Tests. 

1.  Make  yourself  thoroughly  familiar  with  the 
tests,  their  intent  and  technique,  before  attempting 
to  administer  them.  Best  of  all,  attend  a  demonstra- 
tion clinic  by  a  psycho-clinicist  who  has  become  ex- 
pert in  their  use.  The  fact  that  the  tests  do  not 
require  delicate  instruments  of  precision  does  not 
obviate  trained  skill  in  their  administration. 

2.  Attempt  to  win  S's  confidence  and  set  him  at 
ease  at  the  very  outset.  A  kindly  greeting,  a  cheerful 
manner,  a  sympathetic  glance,  an  assuring  smile,  a 
pat  on  the  shoulder  will  melt  the  icy  barrier  with 
most  cliildren.  In  mental  examination  the  person- 
ality of  the  examiner  is  fully  as  important  as  skill 
in  manipulating  the  tests.  Some  individuals  are  con- 
stitutionally or  temperamentally  unfitted  for  the 
work  of  mental  examination. 

3.  Encourage  S,  whether  he  does  well  or  poorly, 
to  do  his  best  by  rather  fulsome  praise  or  lavish  evi- 
dences of  appreciation.  Nothing  equals  liberal  ex- 
pressions of  approbation  for  inciting  a  child  to  put 


GUIDE    FOE   ADMINISTRATION    OF   TESTS  143 

forth  his  best  efforts.  These  are  tests,  not  teaching 
exercises.  Do  not  criticise,  blame,  intimidate  or 
arouse  obstinacy.  Be  tactful  and  patient,  and,  above 
all,  adaptable.  Dispositions  differ.  There  are  some 
subjects  who  cannot  be  won  by  the  arts  of  praise  or 
cajolery;  these  must  be  aroused  out  of  their  state 
of  unresponsiveness  by  other  expedients.  But  it  is 
only  seldom  that  any  subjects  need  to  be  prodded  or 
threatened. 

4.  Give  no  aid  other  than  such  as  is  permitted  in 
the  various  tests. 

5.  Adhere  unvaryingly  to  the  conditions  laid 
down  in  each  test.  Eventually  the  conditions  will  be 
multiplied  and  improved.  The  ''supplementary" 
tests,  which  are  extraneous  to  the  Binet-Simon  scale, 
may  be  given  at  the  discretion  of  E.  "Alternative" 
questions  may  be  used  in  testing  the  same  child  a 
second  time,  or  in  testing  different  children  in  the 
same  school,  to  minimize  the  possibilities  of  coaching. 

6.  It  is  not  necessary  to  follow  a  constant  order 
in  giving  the  different  tests.  But  it  is  better  to  start 
with  tests  beneath  rather  than  above  S's  mental 
level.  Initial  impressions  count  for  much.  Difficult 
tests  at  the  outset  tend  to  discourage  S  at  the  begin- 
ning, and  thus  affect  adversely  the  later  tests.  The 
following  order  is  suggested  for  medium  or  high 
grade  S's:  numbers  35  (45),  10  (32),  46,  42,  41,  47, 
34  (48),  43,  49  (52),  50,  51,  54,  23  (44),  55,  31, 14,  50a, 
or  56,  58,  21, 17a,  53  and  57.  It  is  inadvisable  to  give 
57  immediately  before  53,  as  some  fall  into  the  error 
of  supposing  that  only  rhymes  are  wanted  or  groups 
of  words  in  triplets;  or  10  immediately  before  35, 
as  some  S's  confuse  what  was  read  with  what  was 


144        EXPERIMENTAL   STUDIES  OF   MENTAL  DEFECTIVES 

seen  in  the  pictures  (otherwise  10  makes  a  good  ini- 
tial test) ;  or  43  before  34  for  obvious  reasons. 

7.  Test  S  extensively  both  below  and  above  the 
mental  age  which  he  passes,  particularly  above.  Give 
all  the  higher  tests  unless  it  is  obvious  beyond  ques- 
tion that  the  tests  are  too  difficult.  Do  not  fall  into 
the  error  of  taking  things  for  granted,  nor  acquire 
the  habit  of  omitting  difficult  tests  because  of  indo- 
lence. Only  by  wide-range  testing  shall  we  be  able 
to  arrive  at  a  satisfactory  individual  diagnosis  or  be 
able  satisfactorily  to  criticise  or  revise  the  scale. 

8.  Never  examine  S's  in  groups;  the  work  is 
clinical.  Ordinarily,  do  not  examine  in  the  presence 
of  spectators ;  S  should  be  alone  with  the  examiner 
or  with  the  examiner  and  his  assistant. 

9.  The  tests  should  be  carried  out  in  a  room  that 
is  well  lighted  and  free  from  interruptions  or  noise. 
Some  tests  require  absolute  quiet. 

10.  Always  record  as  many  details  of  S's  verbal 
or  other  reactions  as  time  permits ;  they  may  even- 
tually attain  a  significance  not  contemplated  in  the 
tests  themselves.  Verbatim  records  are  the  ideal 
to  be  approximated. 

11.  In  timing,  measure  the  actual  time  of  the  act 
of  execution.  This  assumes  that  S  begins  to  respond 
as  soon  as  the  test  has  been  explained,  particularly 
in  tests  36,  37,  38,  42  and  47.  But  if  S  reacts  very 
slowly,  it  is  advisable  to  record  both  the  time  re- 
quired to  start  and  the  time  required  to  perform.  It 
is  well  to  avoid  a  too  pedantic  insistence  on  the  time 
conditions.  Some  S  's  are  slow  but  thorough.  With 
such  a  slight  overstepping  of  the  time  limits  is  im- 
material. 


GUIDE    FOE   ADMINISTRATION   OF   TESTS  145 

12.  E  may  read  the  selection  in  35  at  the  normal 
rate  for  such  S's  as  are  unable  to  read  because  of 
defective  vision,  but  whose  intelligence  justifies  the 
belief  that  they  could  read  if  they  had  good  eyes. 

13.  The  attempt  has  been  made  to  standardize 
the  sentences  in  8,  17a,  21  and  58  by  using  only 
single,  simple  concrete  sentences  with  a  familiar 
context. 

14.  The  following  tests  are  probably  too  easy  for 
the  age  standards  to  which  they  are  assigned:  25, 
33,  37,  42,  47,  48,  50  (first  set)  and  57.  The  following 
are  probably  too  difficult:  18,  21,  39,  43  (as  25  cents 
—  9),  44,  45,  46,  53,  54,  55,  58-62.  The  need  to  verify 
these  probabilities  and  to  fit  all  the  tests  to  their 
proper  ages  is  urgent. 

15.  The  following  test,  given  in  connection  with 
33  or  43,  proved  suggestive  among  feeble-minded 
epileptics:  ** Which  would  you  rather  have,  73  cents 
or  59  cents  (or  62  cents  or  48  cents) !"  Possibly  it  is 
adapted  to  some  age-standard. 

16.  The  following  symbols  may  be  used  in  mark- 
ing the  records:  plus  sign  (-f ),  passed;  minus  sign 
( — ),  failed;  i/^,  one-half  credit  (in  rare  instances  in 
which  the  responses  are  not  entirely  wrong) ;  ?,  eval- 
uation of  response  uncertain;  !,  absurd  response; 
I,  ignorance  or  inability  to  comprehend  the  question 
or  test ;  T,  timidity ;  R,  resistance ;  In,  Inattention. 

17.  Credit  the  examinee  (S)  with  the  age  in  which 
all  the  tests,  or  all  but  one,  are  passed.  Credit  one 
year  for  every  (additional)  five  tests  passed  at 
higher  levels,  or  .2  year  for  each  advance  point  (i.  e., 
multiply  the  advance  points  by  two  and  express  as  a 
decimal.    Thus  5%  =  5.6).   Record  the  chronological 


146        EXPERIMENTAL    STUDIES  OP   MENTAL  DEFECTIVES 

ages  in  years  and  months  (thus  8'),  and  the  mental 
ages  in  years  and  tenths  (decimals).  The  record 
should  be  made  on  a  specially  prepared  record  form. 

PERSONAL,  HEREDITARY  AND  ENVIRONMENTAL  DATA.^ 

It  is  particularly  important  to  secure  the  following 
data  in  the  study  of  defectives : 

Personal  Factors  (and  Anamnesis). 

Full  name  Sex  Born  Birthplace 

Nationality  Grade  Degree  and 

character  of  education:    schools  attended 
months  attended  Years  in  each  grade 

Years  retarded  Nature  of  reported  school 

capacities  Incapacities 

Character  of  school  work  at  present  Present 

health  Infant  and  childhood  diseases  and 

accidents'"  Vaccination 

Development  (speech,  standing,  sitting,  walking, 
dentition,  pubescence). 

Stigmata  of  degeneration:  Anatomical  (anomalies 
of  head,  face,  teeth,  ears,  limbs,  genital  organs,  skin, 
body  in  general). 

Physiological  (anomalies  of  sensory,  motor,  genito- 
urinary, speech  and  instinctive  functions,  and  puber- 
tal retardation). 

Psychic  (feeble-mindedness,  aberrations,  disequili- 
bration,  automatisms,  one-sided  talents,  sexual  per- 

^The  author's  syllabi  for  the  observational  study  of  the  personal, 
social,  industrial-motor  and  school  efficiencies  of  defectives  may  be 
obtained  from  the  Nevi^  Jersey  State  Village  for  Epileptics,  at  Skill- 
man  (Forms  III  and  IV).  For  a  well-balanced  syllabus  for  the  clini- 
cal examination  of  children  consult  Edmund  Bubke  Huey.  Back- 
ward and  Fechle-Minded  Children.  Baltimore :  Warwick  &  York,  Inc., 
1912,  Chapter  VI. 


GUIDE    FOR   ADMINISTRATION    OF   TESTS  147 

version,  moral  delinquency,  eccentricity,  delusions, 
imperative    ideas,    illusions,    hallucinations,    psy- 
choses). 
Visual  acuity         Auditory  acuity  Manuometry 

Vital  capacity         Height         Weight  Nu- 

trition Circulation  Pulse  Temperature 

Reflexes         Temperament  and  disposition 
Attitude  toward  others  Deportment  Mental 

and  physical  habits,  good  bad  Complexion 

Color  of  eyes         of  hair 

Hereditary  Factors. 

Birthplace  of  father  of  mother  Num- 

ber of  brothers  of  sisters  Mental  and  phys- 

ical conditions  of  brothers  and  sisters  Order  of 

birth  Weight  at  birth  Condition  at  birth 

Premature  delivery  Condition  of  mother  at 
birth  Mother's  age  at  birth  Father's  age 

The  following  data  regarding  father,  mother 
and  blood  relatives :  longevity,  diseases,  deformities, 
neuroses,  psychoses,  dependency,  vagrancy,  drug 
and  alcoholic  habits,  criminal  tendencies,  sex  perver- 
sions, age  at  death,  causes  of  death 

Environmental  Factors. 

Home  conditions  sanitary  economic 

moral  Father's  occupation  Mother's  oc- 

cupation Character  of  community,  hygienically, 

morally,  educationally  Of  street  influences 

Of  amusement  resorts  Of  play- 

mates and  associates 


INDEX 


INDEX 


Accrediting,  basis  for  Age  XIII ; 

see  advance  grading. 
Administration    of    B.-S.    tests, 

chapter  IV. 
Adults,  superiority,  98 ;  see  ma- 
turity differences. 
Advance  grading,  22,  30,  45,  51. 
basis,  26f. 
with  epileptics,  31. 
Age,  increase  in  capacity  with, 
69;  differences,  see  maturity 
differences. 
Age-norms,     discrepancies,     27, 
30f. 

easiest  or  most  difficult,  30, 
37f,  39f,  41,  43f,  47f,  50. 
range  of  variation,  37. 
tests  of  accuracy,  33,  59. 
variation,  35f,  38f,  40,  46. 
variation  of  In  relation  to 

difficulty  of  test,  40. 
see  norms. 
Age-standards ;  see  age-norms. 
Amateurs     in     mental     testing, 
110;    see    Binet-Simon    scale, 
untrained  users. 
Ambidextrality,  89. 
Anamnesis  record,  146. 
Antero-posterior  sway  ;  see  atax- 

iagraphic  sway. 
Anthropometric  norms,  8. 
Association  word  test,  B.-S.,  61, 
77f.  97. 
M.  v.,  94. 
Ataxlagraphlc  test,  65f,  90f. 
M.  v.,  97. 
Methods,  66. 
Ayres,  104. 

Barr,  90. 

Bell.  45. 

Blnet,  10,  47,  56,  89. 

Binet  and  Simon,  118. 


Blnet-Simon  scale, 

accuracy,  45f,  60,  72,  77. 
81f,  89,  104f. 

age-norms  (which  see),  27, 
30. 

basis  of  accrediting,  22. 

basis  of  norms,  10. 

checking,  16. 

classification,  10,  58,  60,  109. 

classification  of  epileptic 
feeble-minded,  14. 

discrepancies,  see  age- 
norms. 

discrepant  experimental  re- 
sults, 55. 

experimental  stage,  55. 

general  directions  for  ad- 
ministering, 142. 

guide,  chapter  IV. 

imperfections  or  inaccu- 
racy, 2,  27f,  45f,  57,  60, 
117. 

measure  of  retardation,  10. 

method  of  scoring,  21. 

method  of  testing  accu- 
racy, 20flf,  33,  59. 

national  differences,  55. 

need  of  trained  use,  110. 

need  to  test  fundamental 
capacities,  56. 

order  of  giving  tests,  143. 

relevancy,   see  accuracy. 

revision,  55f. 

serviceability,  see  value. 

standardization.   116f. 

training  teats.  57. 

untrained  users,  1,  110,  116. 

validity,  see  accurao*. 

uses,  1. 

value.  2,  9f,  58.  60,  105,  117. 

victimization,  1. 
Bobcrtag,  44f,  47,  61,  69,  118. 
Body    sway,    see   ataxlagraphlc 
sway. 


[151 J 


152        EXPERIMENTAL   STUDIES  OF  MENTAL  DEFECTIVES 


Boys,  epileptic  superiority  over 

girls,  24, 
Boys,  see  epileptics. 
Bowditch,  8. 

Carman,  89. 

Chllds,  45. 

Children,  use  of  term  in  tables, 

25. 
Children,    see   maturity    differ- 
ences. 
Clinical  psychologist,  functions, 

5. 
Classification,  epileptics,  14. 

feeble-minded,  14. 

see  under  Binet-Simon. 
Coefficient    of    variability,    see 

mean  variation. 
Color  blindness,  69. 
Color  test,  B.-S.,  61,  67f. 

M.  v.,  94. 
Consulting  psychologist,  5. 
Corrective  formula,  26. 
Courtis,  105. 
Curve  of  distribution,  12. 

continuity,  107. 

epileptic,  108. 

unimodal,  108. 

Data,  reliability  of  author's,  35. 
Decroly  and  Degand,  47f. 
Defectives,  superiority  of  adult, 
15. 
treatment,  5f. 
Degeneration,  epileptic,  24. 
Degenerates,  grip,  87. 
Developmental,  see  norms,  rate 
tests. 

Difficult  tests,  see  age-norms. 
Discrepancies,    in   experimental 
findings,  50,  116. 
from  different  bases  of  scor- 
ing, 22f,  25-28. 
see  age-norms. 
Distribution,  see  curve  of. 
Dynamometer,   calibration,  63f. 

errors,  64f. 
Dynamometry,  degenerate,  87. 
importance,  89. 
M.  v.,  96. 


normal,  87. 
test,  62f,  64,  83f. 
Epileptics,  adults,  24,  51f,  95. 
amount  of  retardation,  lOOf. 
boys,  25,  37   (see  maturity 

differences), 
children,  51. 
classification,  14f. 
common  humanity,  108. 
conditions  during  test,  107. 
feeble-minded,  16f. 
girls,  37   (see  maturity), 
grading  based  on  advance 

credits,  43. 
Institutional  care,  15. 
intellectual      improvement, 

98. 
male  superiority,  99f,  101, 

103f. 
memory    (which    see),    53, 

95. 
mental     mechanisms,     20f, 

53. 
mental    peculiarities,      20f, 

53,  106. 
non-retardates,  16f. 
practice,  63. 
responses,  54,  106. 
school  children,  2; 
sensibility,  54. 
skewed    curve,       18,    20-28 

(see  skewed), 
superiority  to  feeble-mind- 
ed, 15. 
test  of  typical  group,  17. 
typical  mental  station,  15. 

Factors,    of    skewed    epileptic 

curve,  18. 
Feeble-minded  curve,  18,  20,  31. 
Feeble-minded,  classification,  14. 

standard,  16f. 
Form-board   test,   62f,   73f,   97, 
106. 

M.  v.,  96. 

Galton,  8. 

Girl,  see  epileptics. 

Goddard,  14,  21,  44f,  47,  55,  106. 

Graded  scales,  59,  98,  104,  108. 


INDEX 


153 


Guide,  B.-S.,  chapter  IV. 

Hand-grip,  see  dynamometry. 
Huey,  45,  118,  146. 

Index  of  riglitliandedness,  86f, 
89. 

see  dynamometry. 

Individual    curves    of    develop- 
ment, 7. 

Institutions  for  epileptics,  99. 

Irregularity,    see    mean    varia- 
tion. 

Jacob,  107. 
Johnson,  107. 
Johnston,  44f,  47,  118. 

Kuhlmann,  118. 

Male,  variation,  104. 

intellectual  superiority,  99f, 
101,  103. 
Manuometry,  see  dynamometry, 

G2. 
Maturity    dififerences    in    tests, 
97f. 

in  association  test,  77,  79, 

97. 
In  ataxiagraphic  sway,  90f. 
in  color  test,  67f. 
in    distribution    curve,    15, 

Table  I. 
in  dynamometry,  83f,  88f. 
in  form-board  test,  73f,  97. 
in  M.  v.,  94f. 
memory  of  facts  read,  81  f, 

97. 
in  reading  test,  71f.  97. 
Mean  variation,  93f,  105. 

as  test  of  age-norms,  38. 

in  association  test,  1)4. 

in  ataxiagraphic  sway,  97. 

in  color  test,  94. 

in  dynamometry,  90. 

in  form-l)oard  test,  90. 

maximal       |)ermi8sible      in 

norms.  lO.""*. 
In  niemory  capacity.  95. 
in  reading  test,  94,  95. 
in  various  traits,  93f. 


Memory  of  digits,  107. 
Mental  examiners,  142. 
Mental  levels,  impairment,  57. 
Mental  measurements,  variable, 

94,  105. 
Mental   norms,   national  dififer- 
ences,  55. 

see  age-norms. 
Mental   norms,   different  social 

stations,  57. 
Mental  scales,  relevancy  in  ho- 
mogenous groups,  60. 

see  accuracy   under   Binet- 
Simon  scale. 
Mental     traits,     increase     with 
age,  59f. 
variation,  chapter  III. 
Mental  wreckage,  epileptics,  54. 
see    epileptics,    mental    pe- 
culiarities. 
Mentation,  epileptic,  53. 
Methods  of  testing  B.-S.  scale, 
31ff. 

importance,  116.  ) 

vagueness  of  statements  of, 
30. 

Nature,  57. 

Normal  age-norms,  comparative, 
7. 

see  age-norms. 
Normal    scales    of    intelligence, 

21. 
Normal  variation,  42. 
Norms,     maximal     permissible, 
105. 
need  of  co-operation,  56. 
relation  to  M.  V.,  93. 
standard  of,  42. 
see  age-norms. 
Nurture,  57. 

Orthogenesis,  5. 
Orthogenics.  111. 
Orthojthrenlcs,  .5. 
Orthosoniatics,  .5. 

riivsical  traits,  variation,  cha|>- 

tcr  III. 
Plan  for  study  of  defectives,  0. 


154        EXPERIMENTAL    STUDIES  OF   MENTAL   DEFECTIVES 


Porter.  8. 

Practice,  63. 

Praise  in  testing,  142. 

Probability,  curve,  17f. 

Psychical  rate  norms,  8,  9. 

see  rate  tests,  age-norms. 
Psycho-clinical    research,    need 
of,  56. 

Range  in   M.   V.    of   B,-S.   age- 
norms,  37,  39,  40f. 
see  variation. 
Rate   tests   of   mental   develop- 
ment, 1,  7. 
see     age-norms,     psychical 
rate  norms. 
Reading,  adult  art,  72. 
Reading  test,  B.-S.,  62,  71f,  97, 
106. 

differences    between    imbe- 
ciles and  morons,  73. 
M.  v.,  94. 

memory   in,   81f,  97. 
as  training  test,  73. 
Record,  verbatim,  144. 
Reproduction  of  selection  read, 

see  reading  test,  memory. 
Research  psychologist,  5. 
Results  in  education,  measure- 
ment, 8. 
Retardation,   amount,   lOOf. 

Scale    of    intelligence,    common 
for  children  and  adults,  98. 
for  both  sexes,  104. 
need  for,  108. 
practicability,  109. 
see  Binet-Simon  scale. 
Schuyten,  89. 
Scoring,  bases,  21f,  26f. 

see  advance  grading. 
Sensory   discrimination,    epilep- 
tics, 54. 
Sex   differences,   in   association 
test,  77,  79,  99. 

ataxiagraphic  sway,  90f,  99. 
color  test,  67.  99. 
in  dynamometry.    83f,    88f, 
99. 


in  form-board  test,  73f,  76, 

99. 
in  M.  v.,  94f. 
in  memory,  81. 
in  reading  time,  71f,  99. 
Simon,  10,  118. 

Skewed    epileptic    curve,    from 
averaging       children's       and 
adults'  results,  51f. 
from  defectiveness  of  scale, 

52. 
from  wide-range  method  of 

testing,  51. 
concealed     by     wide-range 

testing,  31. 
see  under  epileptics. 
Skill,   need  of  in  mental   test- 
ing, 110. 
see  Binet-Simon,  untrained 
users. 
Skillman,  research,  6. 
Smedley,  8,  89. 
Standard  of  valid  norms,  42. 

see  norms. 
Standardization,  need  of,  116f. 
Survey  of  human  capacity,  56. 
Symbols  for  marking,  119,  145. 

Technical   training,  need  of  in 
mental  testing,  110. 
see  Binet-Simon,  untrained 
users. 
Terman,  45. 

Testing,   wide-range,   21,   28-31, 
55,  142. 

see       Binet-Simon       scale, 
method. 
Tests,  too  easy  or  difficult,  30, 

37,  39f,  41,  43f,  47f,  50,  145. 
Timing  test,  144. 
Training,  influence  on  tests,  57, 
73. 

Uniformity  in  testing,   116. 
lack  of  in  B.-S.  scale,  41. 
see  age-norms. 

Variation,  continuity,  107. 

maximal  permissible  in  age- 
norms,  42. 


INDEX 


155 


in  mental      and      physical       Wallin,  5,  6,  8,  45,  109,  118. 


traits,  chapter  III. 
in  normal  persons,  42. 
see  range,  age-norms. 
Vaschide,  89. 

Vineland,  method  of  B.-S.  test- 
ing at,  30. 
results,  14. 


Warning,  in  use  of  B.-S.  scale, 

109. 
Whipple.  Gl,  118. 
Wide-range  method,  see  testing. 


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